MEDIA KIT - Queensland Art Gallery
MEDIA KIT - Queensland Art Gallery
MEDIA KIT - Queensland Art Gallery
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MEMORIES AND EMOTIONS<br />
At the start of the 20th-century, increased access to mass-produced goods such as bedcovers marked a<br />
decline in traditional craft skills. Quilt-making survived in economically deprived areas such as Wales and<br />
the north-east of England, where the design and sewing of quilts were both an important means of selfexpression<br />
and a way of earning money for widows and families with no income. Throughout the 20thcentury<br />
quilts continued to have a functional role, providing warmth and decoration yet also serving as acts<br />
of remembrance providing a link between the past and the present.<br />
SANDERSON STAR BEDCOVER 1910–20<br />
The design of this bedcover, originally conceived by quilt<br />
designer Elizabeth Sanderson, was much emulated in the early<br />
20th-century. Although this quilt cannot be attributed to<br />
Sanderson, it testifies to her significance as a designer and<br />
teacher.<br />
She had a profitable career as a ‘stamper’ marking out quilt-top<br />
designs in blue pencil for quilting by professional or domestic<br />
quilters. She ran an apprentice system, training young girls in<br />
stamping at her house so that they could eventually be hired as<br />
professional markers.<br />
Maker unknown / ‘Sanderson Star’ bedcover<br />
1910–20 / Cotton / Collection: Victoria and<br />
Albert Museum, London / © Victoria and<br />
Albert Museum, London<br />
THE RAJAH QUILT 1841<br />
In 1816, Elizabeth Fry formed the British Ladies’<br />
Society for the Reformation of Female Prisoners. They<br />
donated sewing supplies to women in prison and soon<br />
turned their attention to convict ships bound for<br />
Tasmania.<br />
Fabric, thread and needles were carried on board HMS<br />
Rajah by 180 women prisoners when it set sail from<br />
Woolwich on 5 April 1841. When the ship arrived in<br />
Hobart, Australia, the women had produced The Rajah<br />
quilt. Now in the National <strong>Gallery</strong> of Australia<br />
Collection, it is one of the world’s most important<br />
textiles.<br />
Unknown female convicts on board the Rajah / The Rajah quilt<br />
(detail) 1841 / Pieced medallion style unlined coverlet: cotton<br />
sheeting and chintz appliqué, silk thread embroidery / 325 x<br />
337.2cm / Gift of Les Hollings and the Australian Textiles Fund<br />
1989 / Collection: National <strong>Gallery</strong> of Australia, Canberra<br />
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