Faith Ringgold is a rights activist, mixed media sculptor, writer, and painter. Her most famous works, her Narrative Quilts, are a combination of her writings and oil painting. The story quilt has always been a traditional American craft and has roots in African culture. Quilting runs deep in Faith’s roots, from her great-great-great grandmother who was a slave to her fashion designer mother. It was important for Faith to emphasize narrative and information over technique and style in these works. Read more about Faith Ringgold and look up more information of Quilting in America. This information will help you in designing your quilt.
Materials:
● Colored paper
● Glue stick
● Scissors
● String
● Hole punch
● Sketch paper
● Pencil
● Markers
● Plain white paper or cardstock
Directions:
1 - Research quilts and the meanings behind them for inspiration.
2 - On sketch paper, write down what you want your quilt to look like and what you want it to express. It could be an emotion, a life event, or hopes and dreams.
3 - Cut out four semi-large squares out of white paper. These will be the quilt pieces on which you will create your designs.
4 - Using your sketch as a reference, draw out your characters or ideas on colored paper and cut them out. You can use a marker or pencil to draw these.
5 - When you have your shapes cut out, arrange them and glue them to the square pieces of white paper or cardstock.
6 - When you have all four quilt squares designed and finished, hole punch one of the sides and either the top or bottom of each square. (See example).
7 - Take the string and thread it through the sides of two of your squares, attaching them together.
8 - Repeat this step with the other two squares.
9 - Use the same technique to attach both sets of combined pieces into one complete square.
10 - How does each square express the story you wanted to tell?
11 - Share your quilt with your family, friends, and with the museum!
Remember, you’re the artist here! Get inspired, be creative, and, most importantly, have fun!