QUILT INDEX RECORD

14-10-128

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Who documented this quilt?

Lands' End All-American Quilt Collection

American Folklife Center, Library of Congress Documentation Number:

AFC 1997/011: Folder 8993 P1

Alternate inventory number for this quilt. This might be a museum accession number.

afcqltle le072

Person filling out this form is:

Quiltmaker

Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:

Quiltmaker submitted information with quilt.

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

The Samovar Warms the Heart as it Heats the Tea

How wide is the quilt?

60 inches

How long is the quilt?

60 inches

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt started?

Winter, 1993

When was the quilt finished?

Spring, 1994

Describe the quilt's layout:

Pictorial

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Other synthetic; Wool

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Machine Piecing

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Reverse Applique; Hand Applique

How are the layers held together?

Not quilted

Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:

The following information was supplied by the quiltmaker: If your quilt is based on a traditional pattern or an earlier quilt, what is the name of the pattern? "There is nothing traditional about my banners except a love of color and pattern and the inordinate amount of time it takes to produce a finished piece." "I don't make quilts. This banner isn't quilted. Sometimes judges let my work into quilt shows because they like the humor or artistry -- but it really isn't a quilt." "I draw on black cloth with chalk, sew through to colors that are placed beneath the black and cut away the black." How did you choose the materials used in your quilt? "I use mostly chintzes and upholstery fabrics -- anything that can be machine stitched. I have boxes of cold fabric in my unheated garage. Perfectly perfect strangers send me fabric they think would fit in my quilts. Isn't that amazing! Sometimes the ugliest cloth is super for birch bark on stones." "I started to enjoy Russian folk art when I moved to Alaska and wanted to make a still life about the big Tula samovar that was in my dining room. That grew into a show of 15 or so banners based on Russian themes. Fairy tales, heroes, legends, Firebirds, Bogatyrs, saints and dragons -- really just a lot of giant illustrations in fabric." How long have you been making quilts? How did you learn to quilt? "I used to make regular quilted quilts for beds. . . I started that about 26 years ago. I came to this reverse applique style because I wanted the look of hand drawn lines. I taught myself. I used to be a printmaker -- the layering of reverse applique is similar to multicolored block printmaking -- there is a certain amount of 'plan ahead' involved." What was your primary reason for entering the Lands' End contest? Do you frequently enter your quilts in competition? "I usually do solo shows -- I think this was my 1st competition. I enter competitions now only if I know non-traditional quilts are acceptable. Actually, I am 1 of 12 quilters who meet once a month to help and criticize each others work. The members of Art Quilt Network North told me not to enter this contest -- so I did! Usually they are right about things esthetic, however." Has being a winner in the Land's End contest made a difference in your life? Has it changed the way you look at your work as a quilt maker? "I love to get letters from people I don’t know. Anytime photos of banners appear some new interesting correspondence occurs. My work as an artist happens after my whole day as a teacher, I'm trying hard not to imitate myself."

Quilt top made by:

Gant, Alice

Where the quilt was made, city:

Anchorage

Where the quilt was made, state:

Alaska (AK)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

Why was the quilt made?

Challenge or Contest entry; Art or personal expression; Personal income

Contests entered:

This quilt was part of the Lands' End All-American Quilt Contest. 1994 Judges' Choice Winner

Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/qlt:@FIELD(DOCID+@LIT(le072))

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Description of quilt:

This quilt is part of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress "Quilts and Quiltmaking in American: 1978-1996 exhibit. It was winner in the Lands' End All-American Quilt Contest.

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

American Folklife Center, Library of Congress. Email: folklife@loc.gov