Every Quilt Has a Story

..…….even when that story is just about the person who made it and the ‘story’ known only to them, for the making of a quilt marks a certain passage of time in a quilter’s life.  Quilts have a way of talking to us, too.  They speak to us visually through their use of colour; through their composition of pattern design and then, oftentimes through the purpose for which it is made.   Many quilters belong to quilt guilds who contribute to outreach programs.  They raise money through raffle quilts for service organizations; contribute quilts within their communities to fire and police departments as well as women’s shelters for victims of domestic abuse.  Quilts do more than just bring comfort to their recipients; they become part of a socially conscious network of society.

Two years ago, on a snowy Monday morning in the Orangeville offices of Telecheck, my friend and fellow volunteer, Heather, spoke to me about making a quilt for The Spark of Brilliance, another organization to which she devoted time as a volunteer.  Since Heather is not a quiltmaker, I agreed to help her because the genesis of The Spark of Brilliance has affected my life as well as Heather’s own family.  Having attended the breast cancer quilt exhibits in Stratford, Ontario over the years, Heather thought of how those quilts brought attention towards breast cancer in women.  She wondered if a quilt made for The Spark of Brilliance might serve the same purpose.

The Spark of Brilliance is an organization which was founded over a decade ago by a remarkable woman by the name of Judith Rosenberg, a mental health professional living in Guelph, Ontario.  In 1998 Judith’s son, Jay, intellectually intelligent; an Ontario Scholar in high school and who had attended university and The Ontario College of Art had reached the point where he could no longer cope with his life or his education.  He was admitted to the Clark Institute of Psychiatry, now the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, in Toronto.  Suffering from severe psychosis, Jay was diagnosed with schizoaffective and bipolar disorders.  Trying to connect with Jay mentally and emotionally during his hospitalization, Judith remembered how he had loved his painting and she began taking art supplies with her when she visited Jay in hospital.  Gradually, Jay began to take an interest in his artwork again.  Judith also recognized the interest the other patients had Jay’s artwork and two years later, following a mental health workshop in Guelph, Judith explored the concept of forming a community-based mental health initiative promoting healing through the creative arts.  The first chapter of The Spark of Brilliance was formed in Guelph; others followed in the small towns of Orangeville, Elora/Fergus and the cities of Kitchener/Waterloo.  Most recently, a chapter has been formed in Toronto.  Workshops are open to people who are experiencing mental health issues, as well as family members, friends and mental health workers.  Workshops include instruction in the visual arts and crafts as well as David Granier’s ‘Stand Up For Mental Health’ programme which supports participants in performing at conferences, treatment centres, psychiatric wards and various mental health organizations and for the general public, as well.  David, who suffers from depression himself, says: “We use comedy to give those with mental illness a voice in helping to reduce the stigma around mental illness”.

Our quilt project began with two road trips as both Heather and I live in the country north of Toronto.  First on our list was a quilt shop in nearby Guelph where Heather bought many meters of a good quality, one hundred percent white cotton for the top of the quilt, plus backing, batting, threads and so on.  Our next trip took us into the middle of city where fabric paints and paint brushes were purchased at the Above Ground Art Store adjacent to the Ontario College of Art & Design.  Heather’s concept for the quilt was to have participants of The Spark of Brilliance workshops paint a twelve inch square block reflecting how mental illness had impacted their lives.  Since I felt that the quilt needed a focal point, my contribution would be designing and sewing the centre section of the quilt.  I chose a painting, by encaustic artist, Andrea Bird, who gave permission to use her painting, Fragile, from the booklet, “Rollercoaster to Recovery; a Guidebook for Families Navigating the Mental Health System in Wellington-Dufferin Counties” for the central design.  As I set about collecting fabrics and drawing designs, I found the experience of creating a free-form fabric collage quite different from my usual structured approach to design.  The centre was completed inside of two months but as it sometimes happens, Heather ran out of steam and the project ground to a halt.  A year later, I contacted Judith Rosenberg asking if she would complete the project and with her usual enthusiasm, she quickly responded.  Judith arranged for the block-painting workshops and before long, she had more painted blocks than we had anticipated.  Some have now been sewn into the backing of the quilt.  At my suggestion, Judith contacted the Royal City Quilter’s Guild in Guelph and they assembled and finished the sewing of the quilt.  They chose the fabrics and colours of the striped border around the central design and around the edges of the quilt.  In time, Judith and her assistant, Marcey Grey will prepare a small booklet explaining the story of the quilt and of those who participated in the making of it.  This will accompany the quilt when it goes out on exhibit.

This is not a visually quiet quilt nor will it win awards for design or workmanship.  But, it is a quilt that will draw the viewer’s attention simply because of its spontaneous combustion of colours and this is what we’d hoped for…to draw attention to its purpose….that of addressing the issues of mental illness.  That is its story.

Mental illness is society’s silent illness.  It knows no socio-economic, cultural or educational bounds.  There is a stigma attached to mental illness that can and does cause endless pain and tragedy in the lives of those who suffer from it and for their families, as well.  It can be a socially isolating illness because there is little to understand about it.   While you can see a broken leg; you cannot always see a broken mind.  As tragic as cancer is; it is a more socially acceptable illness where family and friends know their roles and can support the ill person and their family in a way familiar to them.  Yet, with mental illness, while the initial caring support is often there for the person and for their family, when the illness becomes chronic and of long duration, family and friends often drift away, unable to cope leaving further pain in its wake.

Many quilts have a story to tell; some intentionally, some not and yet each quilt in its own way marks a passage of time in a quiltmaker’s life.  A story to be told perhaps, known only to the maker of that quilt, but a story, nevertheless.

Contributed by:  Sandy Small Proudfoot, AOCA. www.farmerswalkbb.com

The Spark of Brilliance:   http://sparkofbrilliance.org

Andrea Bird, artist:         www.andreabird.com

© The Canadian Quilter Summer 2011