July 2004
The Grand Opening of The Quilters Hall of Fame
by Teri Klassen
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Gathered on the lawn in front of the Marie Webster House, over 300
enthusiastic guests celebrated the Grand Opening of The Quilters Hall of
Fame. “We’re all her making history,” said event coordinator Karen
Alexander. This sense of history-in-making was pervasive throughout the four-
day Celebration, thanks in large part to the presence of so many quilt-world
legends.
Eleven Honorees, identified by commemorative medallions on blue ribbons,
were on hand to attend the Grand Opening. Site Manager Madonna Fowler
estimated that the three-story Webster House, festive with Honoree quilts and
memorabilia, a gift shop and vintage garden, received at least 200 visitors a
day during the four-day event. Participants from different parts of the country
and different spheres of the quilt world – art quilts, traditional quilts, quilt
history and the quilt business – truly shared a sense of community.
In her program on the history of the sewing machine, Honoree Jean Ray
Laury observed that early manufacturers presented it as an elegant piece of
furniture rather than as a tool. Among the advertising cards and postcards she
showed was one that pictured men watching a woman at a sewing machine.
“You obviously exude a great deal of sex appeal as you sew,” said Jean. She
is shown here with her pioneering Tom’s Quilt, exhibited in the Webster
House. Jean also led a workshop on “Photo Transfer to Fabric.”
Honoree Jeffrey Gutcheon gave a slide lecture on his experience teaching
Haitians to quilt as part of an economic development project in 1974. Jeffrey
exhibited his quilt, Hamish to the Amish #1: Pretty Polly, at the Honorees’
exhibit in the Marion Public Library.
Honoree Yvonne Porcella treated us to a talk on her delightful quilts, “Dog,
Frogs & Cherubs,” followed by lunch at Marion’s elegant Hostess House.
Yvonne also led a workshop at the library: “1930s Quilt Block: Quick Clips
Original.” Her colorful wall hangings were exhibited at the library as well as in
the Marie Webster House. Honoree Donna Wilder staged a nostalgic fashion
show, “Wearable Art: A Quilted Expression,” at the Country Club, using local
teens as models. Garments selected from 20 years of Fairfield Fashion Shows
included Caryl Bryer Fallert’s coat with a Flying Geese motif, a dress and
headwrap made of men’s ties, a pieced Elizabethan coat with embroidered
portraits of Henry VIII and his six wives, and a wedding gown with trapunto
work. Outfits created by Honorees Yvonne Porcella, Jean Ray Laury and
Georgia Bonesteel were modeled.
Honoree Jinny Beyer presented her popular “Color Confidence” workshop at
the Honeywell Center, in nearby Wabash, Indiana, on July 15. Also featured
in Wabash was a tour of Marie Webster’s childhood home, courtesy of the
present owners, Jim and Bonnie Haughn. Jinny spoke about “My World” on
July 16 at Marion’s Meshingomesia Country Club, showing slides of the
faraway places where she has lived, and of the garden she designed with
sections laid out like quilt patterns. Her famous 1977 Ray of Light quilt,
exhibited in the Marie Webster House, awed many visitors. Her Windows
quilt, made following the tragic events of 9/11, was shown at the library in the
exhibit “Today’s Honorees: Collectors and Designers.”
At the “Reclamation of Our Quilting Heritage” panel at the public library,
Karen Alexander and Honoree Georgia Bonesteel interviewed Honorees
Joyce Gross, Cuesta Benberry, and Barbara Brackman. The panelists agreed
that quilt research now requires more documentation than when Marie
Webster wrote the first quilt history in 1915, but that writers still make
mistakes. They recommended that readers read critically and not neglect the
older sources, even if they contain some errors. Cuesta emphasized that even
official sources make mistakes. They urged researchers to study the written
records and material culture that give quilts context: tops, blocks, fabrics,
patterns, embroidery designs, letters, postcards, diaries, newspapers,
magazines, and vintage photographs. When Georgia observed, “I think we
have a trio of private investigators,” Joyce confessed, “I watch Angela
Lansbury religiously.”
In her workshop, “Dating Old Quilts: Material Pleasures,” held on July 18 at
Gethsemane Episcopal Church, Honoree Barbara Brackman examined piles
of quilts brought by attendees, and organized them by date and style. Barbara
complimented Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Pennsylvania on producing fine red-
and-green appliqué quilts. “In Ohio they have the showoffs, and in Indiana,”
she said. “Further west, there’s nothing of this quality. So you guys are living
in the right places.”
Honoree Georgia Bonesteel had a busy weekend. In addition to moderating
the panel discussion, she interviewed all the other Honorees for a
documentary she is producing on the Great Quilt Revival. Her son, film maker
Paul Bonesteel, was on hand to videotape the interviews and the Grand
Opening events. We hope to see the program on Public Broadcasting stations
next year. Georgia also led a workshop on July 18, “Catch Crazy Patch
Fever.”
Honoree Jonathan Holstein, who spoke at the very first induction ceremony in
1979, also gave a lecture, 25 years later, at the Founder’s Luncheon on July
16, 2004, at the Country Club. He recalled his excitement at discovering
traditional quilts and introducing them to the art world in the 1970s. He called
Marie Webster “the first quilt celebrity” and noted the many roles that
Honorees have held: artist, designer, author, editor, historian, television host,
teacher, lecturer, collector, curator, founder, entrepreneur and company
executive. He paid tribute to his former wife, Honoree Gail van der Hoof,
who died recently. As a backdrop for his talk, he chose a fine Amish Center
Diamond quilt that was her favorite. “If there is a great quilting bee in the sky,
you can be sure that is where Gail is,” he said.
Honoree Karey Bresenhan spoke enthusiastically about her work, “The Best
Job in the World: Celebrating Great Quilts!” During her talk at the Country
Club on July 15, she reviewed major trends of the 30-year quilt revival and
art-quilt movement including the rise of machine quilting, use of
embellishments, landscape quilts, and days we couldn’t get yellow,” Karey
said, noting that quilts are now a $2.5 billion industry.
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