Thursday, May 31, 2012

Quilts, by Roderick Kiracofe


Oh, Happy Day! Roderick Kiracofe's new book has just been released. I've been eagerly anticipating it for several months, since I learned about it from him through Facebook. Recently, I learned he would be self-publishing the book through Blurb, and that got me even more excited! The book is simply called "Quilts" and it's the first book we have seen from Kiracofe since 1994, when he authored "Cloth and Comfort: Pieces of Women's Lives from Their Quilts and Diaries" (Clarkson Potter).


The previous year he authored the seminal book, "The American Quilt: A History of Cloth and Comfort 1750-1950"(also Clarkson Potter). Kiracofe also wrote the introductions for "A Quilter's Wisdom" (1994, Chronicle Books) and "Going West! Quilts and Community" (2007, Smithsonian American Art Museum). And of course, he also produced five editions of "The Quilt Digest" with Michael Kile, between 1983 and 1987.


The new book examines the visually sophisticated, improvisational quilts of the second half of the 20th century, and it's full of eye candy! In the introduction, he calls the quilts "the extraordinary made from the ordinary" and considers their context within the world of art.


"Much has been made of the particular threshold between a consideration of quilts as artworks and their value in the home as masterpieces of make-do that bring warmth and beauty to a quotidian context," said Kiracofe in his introduction. "This presentation of quilts, representing the different dreams and different voices of the makers, is absolutely in the interest of feeding the momentum of the ever-expanding appreciation for the innovative quiltmaking and allowing the conversations to continue with all the nuance that these works of art merit."

I agree, wholeheartedly.


The book is available in hard cover, soft cover, and e-book, and you can order it through Blurb. To preview and purchase the book, click here.

6 comments:

  1. Every quilt photo I've seen from this book is exciting! Can't wait to share it with the S.C. quilters...

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  2. Looks like a great book. Very fun quilts!!!

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  3. I just saw the preview of the book. It looks so exciting. Can't wait to get my copy.

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  4. It is exciting!! And I'm especially interested in the book because I'm working on my own collection/book of quilts that are included in the period - 1970s - but very different in a lot of ways. My book will also be self-published through Blurb, and the arrival of "Quilts" is already proving to be highly influential.

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    1. I have seen lot of your quilts on this blog. To be able to see them in a book will be even better! Looking forward to it.

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  5. awesome stuff! More power to your blog!

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