The Quilter

Original - Oil on canvas
16" x 20"

After writing my fictional novel, A Quilt of Dreams, I have become even more aware of the quilters around me in the art world. I admire their ability to produce beautiful pieces of work using only fabric as their palette and the dedication to work with those tiny little pieces of cloth and sewing them together with such precision. This painting is a sketch  to one completed on a larger canvas dedicated to the quilters through the times.  The large canvas is in a private collection. This image is a tribute to all quilters and their ability to work those tiny pieces of fabric into wonderful works of art. I have incorporated many Adinkra symbols in the fabric patches which are used in Ghana to relate traditional proverbs and lessons. I have used symbols for struggle, wealth, and perseverance. In the background are the ever present ancestors guiding the creative spirit of this quilter as many quilters of today often work alone to produce artistic quilts. Historically, it was a tradition that women gathered together in groups and worked on a quilt often finishing faster and able to make more as a functional source of warmth for the coming winter.