New Documentary, 'Stitched,' Brings Controversial Quilting Legends Together

"Behind every stitch, there is a story..."

In Jena Moreno's new documentary, Stitched, we get an insider's view into the weird and wild world of...quilting. In an e-mail to HuffPost Arts, Moreno wrote, "I had always wanted to make a film. My husband was a TV news cameraman and I worked as a reporter." She continued, "I didn't want my film to have anything to do with what I covered -- international business, airlines and shipping. So that's how quilting became the subject of our first film."

In the film, we follow three famous (and arguably infamous) quilters as they get ready for the upcoming International Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas. This is the largest quilting festival in the country, mind you, with 50,000 quilters participating each year.

Hollis Chatelain, Caryl Bryer Fallert and Randall Cook each have a unique style, and each pushes the boundaries of traditional quilting, eschewing pastels and block designs for more colorful forms. For instance, Chatelain paints directly onto her quilts, while Randall Cook's quilted treasures present Adonis-like male nudes in motion. The irrepressible Cook says, "If this doesn't get accepted in Houston, I will be really distraught." Who will deny this man his day in the sun?

The stakes are high, and the competition is cut-throat. Don't let your view of old lady quilters cloud your vision, because "Stitched" reveals a new world of quilting that would cause your dear auntie to have a fit.

You can see "Stitched" at the Sedona Film Festival on February 24th and 25th, or in these cities in March.

Also on HuffPost:

Comments

[WoodyCPM]

09:40 PM on 02/22/2012

The National Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY will leave you awestruck. The quilts there are amazingly complex, simply gorgeous, beautiful art. It's well worth a trip out of the way to see it. I kept thinking that the museum and certainly those pieces should hang in Washington D.C. or even the Modern in NYC. These ain't your granny's quilts, for the most part.

[joestatler]

09:37 PM on 02/22/2012

The First Rule Of The Quilting Society Is You Don't Talk About The Quilting Society - (The Onion)

[grandma58]

08:43 PM on 02/22/2012

Here is a newer quilt project
http://www.thelynchquiltsproject.com/

and here is a link to Native American quilts at the Smithsonian
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/multimedia/photos/?c=y&articleID=78435422

[tightjaws]

07:23 PM on 02/22/2012

Stitched is one of the best documentaries that I have ever seen.

[Bolkonsky]

06:14 PM on 02/22/2012

Nothing tops Gee's Bend.

http://www.quiltsofgeesbend.com/

Light years ahead of and beyond anything on view at the Quilt Show, which is impressive, but terribly stunted by shallow obsession with craft.

[eric14]

06:41 PM on 02/22/2012

Absolutely. For a great overview google

Gee's bend

Go to images and Wow. The movement before your eyes!

[sydneymoon]

07:47 AM on 02/26/2012

Beautiful

[cheo]

07:19 PM on 02/22/2012

Thanks for the link; I have seen articles on their quilts. They're striking.

One thing I miss about not being in Bend, OR right now is the annual Sister's Quilt Show which draws people from everywhere; it's a huge show and has an amazing assortment of quilts, from traditional to completely outside the box.

Another place to see creative new techniques is Threads Magazine and American Crafts Mag.

[Touki10]

08:02 PM on 02/22/2012

Cheo,

If you like the Sister's Show, log on to Facebook and search for "Quilts-Vintage and Antique". There is a group of about 500 of us who post pictures of our collections and those of others so we can discuss, admire, collaborate on papers or just love them. We all have different tastes so everything shows up.

[sydneymoon]

07:53 AM on 02/26/2012

I went to the website and I enjoyed the slideshow.Thanks.

[Bunny Tickle Britches]

05:47 PM on 02/22/2012

That trailer had me in stitches!

[GraphicMatt]

01:29 PM on 02/22/2012

Years ago I worked for a non-profit arts organization. We put on a large exhibit of quilts, and I must admit that up until then I had a very different perspective on quilting. Some of the works we had were AMAZING. Now I wish I could remember the names of the artists we had in that show.