The modern quilt movement has dominated the quilting media over the past couple years, so perhaps it wasn’t surprising to see the theme for the 2014 Canadian Quilters Association Trend-Tex Challenge: modern ways. As a quilting professional, judge and blogger, I need to stay up-to-date on developments in our industry. What better way to delve into modern quilting than to make a modern quilt?!
The Trend-Tex Challenge is an annual fundraiser for the Canadian Quilters Association, where participants are challenged to create a small quilt or wearable item using five fabrics generously provided by Trend-Tex Fabrics. In keeping with the modern quilting look, four of the five fabrics were solid or close to it. The fifth – a multi-color print – was a doozy!
Modern quilts are often characterized by expansive negative space. I decided to use the white fabric as the background and to fussy-cut pink, blue, and green stripes out of the multi-print. Working intuitively is celebrated in the modern quilting movement, so I placed the stripes in a pleasing arrangement and appliquéd them in place.
The rectangular white outlines in the multi-print inspired me to create three mini-quilts using the remaining challenge fabrics. Each was extensively quilted – another modern quilting attribute – and tacked onto the equally densely quilted background.
As I quilted, I came up with this fun little artist statement for my challenge quilt called “Falling in Line”.
When it comes to modern ways, what kind of quilt are you?
A basket case of confusion?
Stubborn as a brick wall?
A round peg in a square hole?
Or are you falling in line?
Whatever your preference, whatever your style,
we are all quilters – there is room for us all!
All entries into the Trend-Tex Challenge will be sold by silent auction. They will be displayed at Quilt Canada in Niagara Falls, ON June 11-14, 2014. Watch the Canadian Quilters Association website for more information about bidding on this and other entries. Modern is fun!
Marty says
Thanks for sharing, Kathy. Usually I see the ‘modern’ trend as simplistic designs that are unappealing to me, but you’ve taken it to a different level.
Valorie Spanogle says
I think your quilt is amazing! What clever user of the lines fabric. Hay job!