Just off the beaten path in a little city in Utah named Springville, there is an art museum that has for the last 47 years hosted a show of local quilts. The origins of the museum dates back to as far as 1901. The quilt show began in 1973 as a way to feature the ‘folk art’ of local quilters. 

Because one of our purposes at Curated Quilts is to promote modern quilting, we wanted to share some of the modern quilts that are hanging in this year’s Springville Museum of Art quilt show. Of the 119 quilts in the show only about 12 of them really fit the modern aesthetic, leaving lots of room for growth. We know that the modern quilts are out there. We encourage our readers to share their quilts with their local communities. We know that as you do the love and respect from modern quilting will grow. 

Here are a few of the modern quilts that are enjoying some well deserved wall space in the Springville Art Museum last summer.

Ode to Kandinsky by Sheryl Denise Gillilan

Gillian has long been a fan of the work of Kandinsky’s painted color studies. She was inspired to create a quilted version of Kandinsky’sSquares with Concentric Circles on a bleak day during the pandemic. She says about the process of making the quilt, “I got out my fabric stash and splashed big, crazy colored circles on my design wall. The riotous combinations brightened my mood immediately and I still smile when I look at this quilt.” 

Ties to Homeby Sharon Aposhian Wright @sharonaposhianwright

Wright made this quilt from old ties accumulated over many years. Her mother spent hours unpicking the ties before she died and Wright wanted to honor all the work her mother did by using them in a quilt. We love the recycled nature of this quilt. We are so in love with the back of the quilt that we are lobbying for it to become the front of the quilt. Wright used all her leftover scraps to improvise it.

Tumbling Bricks by Audrey Mann of The Cloth Parcel @theclothparcel

Mann describes this quilt as bricks of color trickling into one another. The machine quilting compliments the quilt design well.

Complementary by Ashley Lehmann

This quilt was created from a Tula Pink pattern calledInterrupted. Lehmann’s fabric choices are quite different from the original quilt that inspired hers. This quilt spoke  loudly from across the room as a result of the bold palette Lehmann used. She made the quilt for her son and daughter in law for their wedding. 

Turbulence by Margo Faccini

Faccini envisioned a storm-tossed ocean when she selected the colors for this quilt. We love the stark contrast of the black background with the softness of the batik fabrics used. 

Party in the Square by Brittany Bowen Burton @brittanybowenburton

Burton says about this quilt, “Party in the Square represents the unstructured serendipity where I can unleash who I want to be, sandwiched between the occasional mundane monotony of life.” The quilt was machine quilted by Natalia Bonner. 

Integrated Stars by Ellina Poulson 

Poulson was inspired by the Charla Khanna doll clothes shown in the Quilters Newsletter October/November 2010 issue. We love the movement created by the various star sizes and the clustered configurations of them. We think this quilt is a great example of modern traditionalism. The quilt was machine quilted by Kim Peterson.

You can find a plethora of modern quilt inspiration in the physical copies of Curated Quilts, or connect with us on Pinterest and Instagram.