Today I presented a quilt I have been working on since the Fall. It is a very personal and cathartic piece about my older brother who lives on the fringe of society with millions of other Americans. And how every person who finds himself (or herself) homeless, starts in this world as a bright new life with potential. In my brother's case, as he grew older he made life choices which resulted in increasing distance from his family and ultimately his current state of homelessness. The figure in the center is my brother, surrounded by pieces of fabric which are held onto the quilt with surface stitching. I quilted the piece with black mettalic thread which reminded me of asphalt. I printed pictures of my brother and family on silk organza and then stitched them to the quilt. The pictures fade as they reach the bottom to show how invisible my brother became in our lives.
Close up pictures of face and hands.
While I waited to present my quilt, I realized the mistake we made in sitting in the back. I ended up being the last presenter after a long line of whimsical, pretty, bright, colorful and clever twists on the theme "Windows. Do You see What I See? Using at least 1 plaid fabric." Then came mine, which as you can see is a bit scary, kind of dark, and sad. I don't know what I expected. Certainly nobody would throw tomatoes would they? Thank goodness my friend Sharon was sitting next to me and my courage was bolstered by her support.
After presentation standing next to my quilt.
The quilt evoked a surprising range of reactions. A few laughed, not understanding that it was not a joke. After my presentation, many members came to me and shared their stories of homeless brothers, sisters, and children. Perhaps in the end, this piece might prove more meaningful to others than I imagined.
For more work on the subject of homelessness, visit this site and see the incredible work of Thelma Smith. http://www.thelmasmith.com//index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1 Her website is being updated, so here is a site that has pictures of her Left Lane Series http://www.thequiltercommunity.com/tqc/articleDetail.do?postId=380
7 comments:
What an incredible quilt. It brought tears to my eyes.
Mona
Your quilt is wonderful. I was so touched by your thoughts.
This truly is wonderful. And so sad. I think of my brother-in-law who is the next thing to homeless, and my son who has many problems.
Your work is fascinating.
I'm commenting late, but I love the quilt. I can't wait to see the quilt inspired by M and her family. Thank you for sharing this.
Betsy
Wow, I 'm crying. I think probably sitting in the back was best. What an impact you must've made.
It always makes me so sad to see the homeless every day on the street corners here, where it's so cold most of the time. I keep asking how can we help them? but never seem to find a good answer.
Becca, Congratulations on this special quilt being accepted into the Lowell Quilt Festival!! It's really such an incredible piece. I'm sure it will move many people.
Vickie
this quilt haunts me. It made such an impact on me that I spoke to my family in LA about it and then on a particularly selfish day for my daughter spoke with her about the quilt, its meaning and how we need to care for each other. she could not believe there were people without homes or families. I could see her little safe mind trying to wrap her arms around the concept. To better help her understand I took her that nite to marietta square and showed her the homeless sleeping there. What a conversation this five year old and I had . She wanted to give each person a hug and then wanted to know what I was going to do to help and I found I had no answer and still don't. Thank you for such a beautiful piece and expanding my daughters world.
Bonnie
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