Quilts, traditionally thought of as bed coverings, have become a form of art as detailed and telling as a painting or sculpture.Thirty-one quilts from Quilt National ’95 will be showcased at Ohio Arts Council’s Riffe Gallery Nov. 7 through Jan. 4, 1997. This biennial event includes works chosen from more than 1,200 entries submitted by artists in 18 countries.’Basically, what you’re seeing are artists using quilts as a medium to make a statement that other artists might make on paint or canvas or clay,’ said project director Hilary Fletcher.According to Fletcher, a group of three judges chose the quilts based on strong image, interesting technique, a fresh statement, and intricate detail. Fletcher said each quilt has its own personality and reflects its maker.’They use whatever materials and methods they can to express the message they’re trying to convey,’ Fletcher said. Some of these materials included beads, paint, metallic thread and text.One such quilt is Aids Web, a complex piece which portrays skeletons, AIDS stamps and the color red to represent blood. The artist, Sara Long, died of AIDS shortly after finishing the piece. Quilt National allows people to discover quilt art for the first time Fletcher said. More than half of 1995’s entries had never submitted their work before. Fletcher referred to them as ‘virgins.’Riffe Gallery has showcased the last three Quilt Nationals. Attendance at the Riffe Gallery greatly increased during the Quilt National ’91 exhibition, the first year the gallery showcased the quilts, said Mary Gray, Riffe Gallery spokeswoman. ‘We knew it would be appealing to Ohio audiences,’ Gray said. ‘We can all understand the quilts.’ Quilt National is sponsored by the Dairy Barn, a non-profit cultural arts organization in Athens, Ohio. The event has created national interest Fletcher said. Quilt National ’97 also received entries from Japan, Germany, Austria and Israel. Even with th
e international participation, Fletcher said the event belongs in Ohio.’Ohio is the heart of the quilt art movement because it originated here,’ she said. Fletcher, also a quilt collector, said that she gets very excited when the boxes of quilts start arriving for the shows.’When I open the boxes, it’s like Christmas,’ she said. ‘I always feel sad when I send them back.’
