QUILT INDEX RECORD

25-21-111

Who documented this quilt?

Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association, Texas Quilt Search

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin

Texas Quilt Search Number:

tqs_0141

Person filling out this form is:

Quiltmaker; Quilt owner; Other

Source of the information on this quilt:

This quilt was reviewed and documented during the Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association's Phase II of the Texas Quilt Search, 1986-1989. Karey Bresenhan served as quilt historian.

When was the form filled out?

1989-1990

Choose the best description of the source to the quilt:

Quiltmaker; Quilt owner

How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?

Made entire quilt

If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?

Made the quilt

If the source helped design the quilt, describe their input:

Designed quilt motif; Designed the pattern

Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:

The quiltmaker owns this quilt.

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Juxtaposition: Red Quilt

Owner's name for quilt:

Justaposition: Red Quilt

How wide is the quilt?

48 in.

How long is the quilt?

64 in.

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

Black; Purple; Red; Turquoise or Teal; White

Overall color scheme:

Multicolor; Bright or primary colors

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Type of inscription:

Date; Signature

Describe the type of inscription:

ID label

Location of inscription:

on back

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt started?

1987

When was the quilt finished?

1987

Family/owner's date for quilt:

1987

Describe the quilt's layout:

Nontraditional or art

Describe the quilt setting:

strip piecing

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton; Cotton or polyester blend

Fabric types used to make the quilt top:

Broadcloth

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Solid/plain; Striped

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Machine Piecing; Strip/string Piecing

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

Can you feel or see paper on the quilt that was used as a construction aid?

no

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton; Cotton or polyester blend

What color is the back of the quilt?

Red

Number of pieces of fabric in the quilt back:

the back is also pieced as a second art piece, using black, reds, white

Describe the back:

Back art/design on quilt back; Different fabrics; Machine sewn; Print; Reversible; Solid/plain

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

How is the binding made?

Straight grain

What is the width of the binding (measure on the top only)?

less than a half inch

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Cotton

How thick is the quilt?

Thin (Less than 3/16?)

How are the layers held together?

Machine quilting

Thread type used for the quilting:

metallic thread on freeform machine quilting

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

7

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

9

Can you see any knots on the front or back of the quilt?

no

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

In-the-ditch; Outline

Describe the quilting designs used:

outline quilted, channel quilted, and free-form machine quilted with metallic thread

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

In "Juxtaposition: Red Quilt," quiltmaker Liz Axford wanted "to create a 'painterly' effect with fabric, with the eye blending the colors to create a sense of 'self illumination.'"

Quilt top made by:

Axford, Elizabeth J.

Quilted by:

Axford, Elizabeth J.

Where the quilt was made, city:

Houston

Where the quilt was made, county:

Harris

Where the quilt was made, state:

Texas (TX)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Made by owner

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

Native Canadian Liz Axford writes that she has "always drawn, painted, created. I began sewing in a required home ec[onomics] class at age fourteen, quickly becoming obsessed and staying up all night to sew." She made her first quilt at age nineteen (a Nine Patch). Now when she quilts, Liz Axford says "I feel I'm free of the outside world--it's a totally indulgent activity--I love to manipulate color & forms; I hope to find myself through this creation."

Why was the quilt made?

Art or personal expression

The quilt was made to be used for:

Artwork/wall hanging

Quilt is presently used as:

Artwork/wall hanging

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Original to maker

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

American International Quilt Association Show, 1987; “Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1936-1986,” 16th Annual International Quilt Festival, November, 1990, Houston, Texas.

Contests entered:

First Place, Artisan's Division, American International Quilt Association, 1987; Honorable Mention, Viewers Choice, Inland Empire Quilters Guild, 1988; quilt also won other juried shows

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

Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association, Texas Quilt Search Archives

Publications (including web sites) where this quilt or maker was featured:

Bresenhan, Karoline Patterson and Nancy O'Bryant Puentes, Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, Vol. II, 1936-1986 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1990), p. 184-185; dust jacket cover.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's name:

Axford, Elizabeth J.

Quilt owner's state:

Texas (TX)

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's birth date:

04/28/1953

Quiltmaker's birthplace, country:

Canada

Quiltmaker's marriage date(s):

1980

Quiltmaker's educational background:

Rice University, BA

Quiltmaker's occupation:

architect

Quiltmaker's state:

Texas (TX)

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

From Class; Self-Taught

When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Age 11-19

Why does the quiltmaker quilt?

Pleasure

Notes on how the quiltmaker learned, and how and why they quilt:

artistic expression; "It's something I seem to have to do."

Does/did the quiltmaker belong to a group? Name of the group?

Contemporary Quilt Group

Where does/did the group meet?

Houston, Texas

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

more than 50

Any other notes or stories about the quiltmaker:

Liz Axford has taken many quilting and fiber arts classes.

Who photographed this quilt?

Sharon Risedorph

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Assistant Director Winedale

Details

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