Quilts, pillows and other textiles, designed, hand ... - Dorothy Markert
Quilts, pillows and other textiles, designed, hand ... - Dorothy Markert
Quilts, pillows and other textiles, designed, hand ... - Dorothy Markert
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<strong>Quilts</strong>, <strong>pillows</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>other</strong><br />
<strong>textiles</strong>,<br />
<strong>designed</strong>,<br />
h<strong>and</strong> screened<br />
<strong>and</strong> sewn<br />
by <strong>Dorothy</strong> <strong>Markert</strong><br />
From old slides taken in the 1970s<br />
<strong>and</strong> 80s when I focused on this type of<br />
work.<br />
All of the screen printed images shown in this presentation were made with the<br />
Hunt-Speedball drawing fluid <strong>and</strong> screen filler method of creating stencils on screens.<br />
The images were painted directly on the screens <strong>and</strong> printed with Speedball textile screen printing ink.<br />
The <strong>other</strong> techniques used were photographic screens <strong>and</strong> Crayola crayon rubbings<br />
as stated in the descriptions. - <strong>Dorothy</strong> <strong>Markert</strong>, © 2009
Idlewood 1907-1978<br />
In 1978 I made a print on paper that<br />
incorporated images of this old<br />
community that began as a summer<br />
campground for wealthy families in<br />
Buffalo, NY. There was a train station<br />
near by making it possible for the men<br />
to commute into the city. Each family<br />
had their own home but they all ate<br />
together in a community dining hall.<br />
I worked with old photos from the<br />
town historian, sketches that I made of<br />
a burned out house on the grounds <strong>and</strong><br />
an old map of the area. At this time the<br />
only access to the area was an old<br />
rickety bridge that went over the 18<br />
Mile Creek. The fire engines would<br />
not use it. Many homes burned. It has<br />
since been replaced.<br />
Idlewood is still there on the shore of<br />
Lake Erie in the town of Hamburg.<br />
While I was printing the separate elements on paper, I decided to print some on fabric. I always had a<br />
lot of remnants from all of the sewing that I did.<br />
The following year I put them all together to make this hanging.<br />
This was the start of my fabric art.
I used a part of the same screen that I<br />
had used in the wall hanging to make an<br />
edition of prints on paper <strong>and</strong> some on<br />
fabric in various color schemes.<br />
Idlewood Girls Pillows<br />
The background of this print was made with a rubbing<br />
From an antique album that had an embossed cover.<br />
The lace borders are also rubbings.
Residence of Capt. B.K.<br />
Buxton<br />
Town of Hamburg, NY<br />
This began as an<strong>other</strong> print on<br />
paper. But this time I planned to<br />
print the elements on fabric<br />
as well as paper. The house in the<br />
snow is an original print from<br />
sketches that I made at the time.<br />
I copied a small early print from a<br />
book of maps of Erie County.<br />
Capt. Buxton is shown in his Civil<br />
War uniform.<br />
His descendents, a couple who had<br />
lived in the house for a long time<br />
were copied from a photograph.<br />
Their faces are repeated in the upper<br />
border.<br />
A print made from a rubbing of old<br />
lace <strong>and</strong> various patchwork patterns<br />
complete this hanging.
Hamburg, NY Quilt<br />
Sometime later, I decided to produce prints that<br />
would be used as quilt squares. The local quilting<br />
shop asked me to make some that they could sell.<br />
First row: the Buxton House, the Brendel Building,<br />
First Bicycle in Hamburg.<br />
Second row: Hamburg Free Library, Village Hall,<br />
Hamburg Peas (label from Hamburg Canning Co.).<br />
Third row: Warren Kleis Barns, Webber Hotel <strong>and</strong><br />
Town Seal.<br />
Fourth row: Oldest House , Hamburg Sun, Erie<br />
Depot.<br />
Fifth row: Refugee Beans (an<strong>other</strong> HCC label),<br />
Water Valley School <strong>and</strong> the Bay View Hotel.<br />
They are all one color prints. This quilt won a first<br />
place award at the Erie County Fair.<br />
The following slide is of a hanging that incorporates<br />
some of the same prints.
Hamburg Canning Co. Labels<br />
I have a collection of early canning labels<br />
that I have framed <strong>and</strong> hung in my<br />
kitchen. I used them as subjects for quilt<br />
squares.<br />
The “Hamburgh Peas” <strong>and</strong> “Refugee<br />
Beans”<br />
labels are quite common, I found them in<br />
an antique shop.<br />
I have never seen an<strong>other</strong><br />
“Hamburgh Sweet Corn”<br />
or “East Hamburg,<br />
Blackberries Preserved”<br />
A friend whose family ran an antique<br />
business found them for me.<br />
The Hamburg Canning Company, established in 1881<br />
was located on the north side of Evans St, at the Erie<br />
Railroad tracks. George M. Pierce was first president.
An<strong>other</strong> Hamburg print.<br />
According to an old newspaper<br />
advertisement from 1889<br />
“Thirty -Third Annual Exhibition of the<br />
Erie C. Agr’l Society”<br />
On The Fair Grounds At<br />
HAMBURG.<br />
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday &<br />
Friday, August 27, 28, 29 & 30, ’89<br />
Gr<strong>and</strong> Baloon Ascention <strong>and</strong><br />
Paraschute Drop”<br />
On Wednesday the 28 which will be a<br />
Gr<strong>and</strong> Spectacle.”<br />
I couldn’t resist copying this advertisement just as it<br />
appeared in 1889.<br />
I made the print in 1983.
Photographic Screen Prints<br />
These small framed prints were made from old advertising for sewing machines in<br />
Hamburg, NY.<br />
A transparency was made on a copy machine of the original add. A photo sensitized<br />
screen was exposed to light with the transparency blocking the light wherever it was<br />
black. This made a photographic stencil.<br />
These were printed on<br />
fabric, bordered with<br />
a calico <strong>and</strong> set into<br />
the frames.<br />
The adds date from 1894.
Amherst, NY quilt<br />
I taught some classes at the Amherst Museum<br />
in Amherst, NY. The Museum had a very<br />
active quilting group. They asked me to make<br />
quilt squares of Amherst subjects. I made so<br />
Many that I decided to put them into a<br />
quilt.<br />
It is a large quilt, it goes on a queen size bed.<br />
I don’t have it any more.<br />
Here is a detail photo of it.
This pillow uses some of the same prints.<br />
The Eagle House was not on the hanging.<br />
the Williamsville Mill is a little clearer<br />
in this photo.<br />
Some <strong>other</strong> Amherst pieces<br />
This hanging shows an early school class;<br />
the mast head for The Amherst Bee, the<br />
Williamsville Mill <strong>and</strong> an add for some sort<br />
of 1800s pump.
Chautauqua Class Quilt<br />
In 1981, I applied to teach a class at the Chautauqua<br />
Institution Summer School.<br />
The class was listed as “An Introduction to Screen<br />
Printing/ Chautauqua Mementos”.<br />
I taught the students to build a small screen <strong>and</strong> to<br />
stretch the screen fabric on it.<br />
I had researched <strong>and</strong> had suitable photo copies of<br />
Chautauqua scenes <strong>and</strong> activities. Some had their<br />
own original ideas.<br />
Each student would print one, two or three images in<br />
one color. If there were 12 people in the class they<br />
would print 12 or more. They shared their prints<br />
with the rest of the class.<br />
Everyone went home with enough quilt blocks to<br />
make a quilt. They could also print on paper to make<br />
a portfolio of prints. This first year, I supplied navy<br />
blue, black <strong>and</strong> brown ink. This became a challenge<br />
when I put them into a quilt.<br />
This quilt still hangs in Kellogg Hall, the Summer<br />
Schools office at the Chautauqua Institution.
Early Chautauqua Hanging<br />
At the top of this piece is the mast head of<br />
The newspaper the Chautauqua Assembly<br />
Herald.<br />
Below is a steamboat coming into<br />
Fair Point l<strong>and</strong>ing.<br />
Under that is a row of chairs symbolizing<br />
the many programs offered to those who were on<br />
the grounds.<br />
Next are portraits of Lewis Miller <strong>and</strong><br />
John Heyl Vincent, founders of the Institution as<br />
a summer assembly to improve teaching in<br />
Sunday schools.<br />
An typical Chautauqua cottage with a family<br />
grouped in front follows.<br />
And finally two prints of paddle wheel steamers<br />
that were once so prevalent on Lake Chautauqua.
An<strong>other</strong> needle book, the Athenaeum<br />
Hotel is on this one. The hanging is<br />
a typical Chautauqua scene, circa 1890.<br />
The <strong>pillows</strong> are of a steamboat coming<br />
into Fair Point L<strong>and</strong>ing, circa 1880<br />
<strong>and</strong> three prints from a rubbing of an<br />
early Chautauqua book make up the<br />
front of this pillow.<br />
More Chautauqua<br />
Needle books with Kellogg Hall <strong>and</strong> a<br />
portrait of the founder of the Chautauqua<br />
Literary <strong>and</strong> Scientific Circle, Kate Kimble<br />
are shown with fabric wine bottle bags that<br />
feature the famous Miller Bell Tower.
Turn of the Century Sewing Class,<br />
Chautauqua, NY<br />
I found a photograph of this group of<br />
young ladies, sitting on a porch obviously<br />
sewing clothes for their dolls.<br />
Their hats <strong>and</strong> shawls are hung on a<br />
rack behind them. The girl st<strong>and</strong>ing is<br />
reading to the <strong>other</strong>s.<br />
Is she reading Bible verses or sewing<br />
instructions?<br />
I made a pen <strong>and</strong> ink drawing of the scene<br />
<strong>and</strong> then a photo screen print on beige<br />
fabric.
Chautauqua Hanging, 2<br />
This hanging was made with<br />
photo screen prints taken directly<br />
from the illustrations in a Harper’s<br />
New Monthly magazine c. 1870.<br />
The original images were line-cuts<br />
<strong>and</strong> they translated very well into<br />
screen prints.<br />
I printed them with black ink onto<br />
white fabric.<br />
The images show the article title<br />
“Chautauqua”, various scenes around the<br />
campground <strong>and</strong> an<strong>other</strong> portrait of<br />
John Heyl Vincent.
Emily Dickinson Hanging<br />
An<strong>other</strong> of my interests is Emily Dickinson. I used a lot of white fabric because I knew that she liked<br />
to dress in white. However, the image that I used shows her in a dark dress. There are many images<br />
from nature, including the “fly” that buzzed when she died. A view of her home <strong>and</strong> refuge is shown.<br />
Charles Wadsworth <strong>and</strong><br />
Thomas Wentworth<br />
Higginson are included<br />
because of their influence<br />
on her work <strong>and</strong> her life.<br />
The quote “The soul selects<br />
Her own society” <strong>and</strong><br />
everything here is screen<br />
printed, except for one<br />
tiny triangle of calico.
A needle book of a Hamburg house, a sewing kit <strong>and</strong><br />
two more needle books (fan <strong>and</strong> doll) are shown with<br />
an Emily pillow.<br />
Emily Dickinson pillow<br />
<strong>and</strong> framed print<br />
Here is the same image of Emily<br />
used to make a pillow <strong>and</strong> a<br />
framed fabric print with calico<br />
borders.
Nine years of<br />
Christmas Dolls<br />
Starting in 1979, I <strong>designed</strong> <strong>and</strong> printed the front <strong>and</strong> back of these small dolls on muslin.<br />
I sold some just as prints on fabric that could be sewn <strong>and</strong> stuffed .<br />
I also sold the little dolls all put together as Christmas decorations.<br />
A number of people collected them.<br />
I included the year that I<br />
made the doll as well as the<br />
year that the original dolls<br />
would have been made<br />
on the back of each one<br />
that I printed.
Carrie Pillow <strong>and</strong> Doll<br />
My “Aunt Carrie” was really my great<br />
aunt. She was my gr<strong>and</strong>m<strong>other</strong>’s sister.<br />
I found a photo of her taken around<br />
1912 <strong>and</strong> used the image to make a<br />
print on paper. At that time, I also<br />
printed one on fabric that I had<br />
mounted onto a sheet of print paper.<br />
This front of this pillow is that print.<br />
It included rubbings of lace <strong>and</strong> book<br />
covers <strong>and</strong> the row of silhouettes<br />
printed with transparent ink.<br />
18” x 14”, 1981<br />
For the doll, I <strong>designed</strong> a back that would match up with the front. I printed them both,<br />
sewed around the outside, turned the doll <strong>and</strong> then I stuffed her. She is about 9 ½” high
The Metcalf House, Buffalo, NY<br />
The Metcalfe House, Buffalo, NY, <strong>designed</strong> by<br />
McKim Mead & White (1884).<br />
A house, now demolished, <strong>designed</strong> in the "early<br />
colonial" style, but looks like early arts & crafts.<br />
The Metcalfe House, <strong>designed</strong> in 1882 by the<br />
well-known New York City firm McKim, Mead<br />
& White, stood on the corner of North Street <strong>and</strong><br />
Delaware Avenue in Buffalo, NY until 1980.<br />
Preservationists were able to only save parts of the<br />
structure from demolition. The dining room <strong>and</strong><br />
library are now housed in Rockwell Hall, Buffalo<br />
State College <strong>and</strong> the Metcalfe House staircase is<br />
in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.<br />
This hanging includes two views of the house, a<br />
portrait of H.H. Richardson, mentor to the<br />
architects <strong>and</strong> a window from the house that was<br />
at the Hamburg Historical Society’s Museum.<br />
Hopefully, the fabrics chosen add to the period<br />
feel of the piece.
RED JACKET<br />
Sa-go-ye-wat-ha (1756?–1830), a Seneca Indian orator<br />
<strong>and</strong> chief. He was called Red Jacket because of his<br />
fondness for the uniform coats given him by British<br />
officers. He joined the British side reluctantly in the<br />
American Revolution <strong>and</strong> was denounced as a coward by<br />
Cornplanter for retreating from the fight at Can<strong>and</strong>aigua<br />
against General John Sullivan's expedition. However,<br />
Red Jacket opposed peace at the council of confederated<br />
tribes at the mouth of the Detroit River in 1786.<br />
In 1792 Red Jacket was one of a group who visited<br />
President Washington at Philadelphia, <strong>and</strong> received a<br />
medal which he always wore with great pride. He upheld<br />
the traditions of his people <strong>and</strong> opposed all white<br />
influences. When New York passed a law forbidding<br />
whites to live on Indian l<strong>and</strong>s, Red Jacket succeeded in<br />
ousting a missionary. He was deposed as chief in 1827<br />
because of his conservatism.<br />
This hanging shows him wearing his large medal, a peace<br />
pipe, the Seneca Mission Church <strong>and</strong> his house on the<br />
Seneca reservation near Buffalo, NY.
Significant Women<br />
In Western New York<br />
In 1984 I was commissioned by the YWCA<br />
of Buffalo to create their Corporate Award.<br />
I researched these women , made small<br />
screen printed portraits of them <strong>and</strong><br />
one or two line statements about them.<br />
These were all put together as the award<br />
along with the recipients name <strong>and</strong> the date.<br />
This is not the hanging that I made for the YWCA.<br />
That had the screen prints on a soft light yellow fabric.<br />
The strip quilting around the prints was in patterned<br />
fabrics of dark red, black <strong>and</strong> the soft yellow.<br />
I never did photograph that piece,<br />
but I still have this one.<br />
I printed on a beige background <strong>and</strong><br />
changed the color scheme.<br />
I added some feather stitching <strong>and</strong> <strong>other</strong><br />
embroidery to this one.
1. Mary Elizabeth Lord was the wife of a Buffalo pastor. She would stop her pony carriage in front<br />
of over loaded wagons <strong>and</strong> just sit there until the driver would lighten the burden for his horse.<br />
She is shown here with her pet dog “Smallweed”. She formed the Buffalo SPCA in 1867.
2. Evelyn Rumsey Cary created “The Spirit of Niagara” a painting that was the emblem of the<br />
Pan-American Exposition in 1902 in Buffalo, NY. A small replica of her painting has been printed in<br />
white onto burgundy fabric next to her. The image was from a fancy dress ball in 1888.
3. Jessie Bonstelle conducted her own theatrical stock company in the Buffalo area around 1900.<br />
She directed, staged <strong>and</strong> acted in her many productions.
4. Alice Moore Hubbard was a driving force in the Roycroft Movement in East Aurora, NY.<br />
As a pioneer in the Women’s Liberation Movement she gained much recognition for her book –<br />
“Women’s Work” in 1908.
5. Charlotte Mulligan was an activist for social reform. She founded a home for destitute men in 1868.<br />
She also headed the Erie Co. branch of the State Charities Aid Association.
6. Anna Katharine Green was a successful Buffalo novelist. Her famous “The Leavenworth Case”<br />
sold over 150,000 copies in the 1880s. Charles Rolfs was an actor who wanted to marry Anna.<br />
She declined unless he would give up his career. He did <strong>and</strong> after they married he became a leading<br />
Arts <strong>and</strong> Crafts furniture designer <strong>and</strong> maker.
7. Mary R. Cass started as an office girl for the F.N. Burt Co. in Buffalo in 1891. She earned the<br />
position of general manager of that company in 1910. The company logo (Buffalo) has been printed<br />
on a fabric strip above her.
8. Cornelia Bentley Sage was director of the Albright Art Gallery in 1910. She was the first woman<br />
In the United States to hold that position in a major art museum.
9. Louise Blanchard Bethune was the first professional American woman architect.<br />
She was a member of the Buffalo firm that <strong>designed</strong> the Lafayette Hotel in 1904.
10. Mary Talbert was a leader in education <strong>and</strong> culture in Buffalo. She received the NAACP<br />
Springarn medal as “Black Citizen of the Year” in the early 1900s.
11. Ellen Beach Yaw was born in Boston, NY in 1868.<br />
She became a world famous coloratura soprano singing for kings <strong>and</strong> queens as well as local benefits.<br />
Her birthplace, a very old home in Boston has a historical marker on it.
12. Clara E. Sipprell was introduced to her art in her br<strong>other</strong>’s Buffalo studio in the early 1900s.<br />
She went on to become one of the world’s great photographers.
Sewing Kit<br />
This was always one of my favorite things<br />
to make. I don’t know where I found the<br />
antique, h<strong>and</strong> driven machine that I copied<br />
And printed on the front of this kit.<br />
It started a collection<br />
of about fifty antique toy sewing machines<br />
that I still have in my sewing room.<br />
Front<br />
Back<br />
The next slide shows you what is inside.
Inside the Sewing Kit<br />
Inside the sewing kit is a heart shaped<br />
pin cushion, flat pockets for needle<br />
books, marking pencils, a thimble,<br />
cards of buttons <strong>and</strong> a small pair of<br />
embroidery scissors.<br />
The gathered pockets toward the<br />
bottom hold spools of thread. There is<br />
a h<strong>and</strong> screened 12 inch ruler along<br />
one side.<br />
The whole kit is a pocket because the<br />
inside <strong>and</strong> outside are separate. Small<br />
sewing projects can go into this pocket<br />
<strong>and</strong> it can be hung on a hook by the<br />
loop at the top.<br />
The kit ties closed with a ribbon.
A Witch Spinning<br />
by Hans Holbein<br />
This graphic rendition of a witch<br />
was a perfect subject for Halloween.<br />
I also screen printed the borders.<br />
There was a h<strong>and</strong> printed label on<br />
the back acknowledging the<br />
original artist.
My Old Singer<br />
I bought this treadle sewing<br />
machine at a local Antique Show.<br />
It sewed beautifully.<br />
Eventually I gave<br />
it up because of lack of space.<br />
I printed this piece on white<br />
fabric <strong>and</strong> the quilt parts on<br />
lavender.<br />
I cut out the lavender pieces <strong>and</strong><br />
appliquéd them onto the white<br />
fabric. Then I h<strong>and</strong> quilted<br />
around the image.<br />
There is an outer binding of black<br />
fabric around the hanging.<br />
It doesn’t really show in this<br />
photo.<br />
1984.
Roycroft Hanging<br />
I have always had an interest in the Roycroft<br />
Movement. This was made long before I became<br />
a Roycroft Renaissance Master Artisan.<br />
The “Roycroft Rose”, Elbert Hubbard with<br />
Richard LeGallien <strong>and</strong> Jerome Conner <strong>and</strong><br />
A view of the Roycroft Chapel.
Pan-American Penny Squares<br />
The Buffalo <strong>and</strong> Erie County Historical<br />
Society asked me to make replicas of<br />
“Penny Squares” from their collection. I<br />
made eight different ones.<br />
The originals were printed in blue <strong>and</strong><br />
<strong>designed</strong> to be embroidered in red.<br />
I skipped a step <strong>and</strong> printed them in red.<br />
I put them together in this hanging.<br />
They are:<br />
Around the World, Horticultural Building<br />
Pan-American logo, Temple of Music<br />
(Where President McKinley was shot.),<br />
New York State Building, A Trip to the<br />
Moon, Triumphal Bridge <strong>and</strong> the Electric<br />
Tower.
4 TH JULY<br />
AT NIAGARA FALLS<br />
THE GREATEST WONDER OF THE AGE<br />
MONS<br />
BLONDIN<br />
WILL REPEAT HIS WONDERFUL FEAT OF<br />
CROSSING<br />
The NIAGARA RIVER<br />
UPON A TIGHT ROPE & RETURN<br />
ON MONDAY<br />
THE 4 TH OF JULY<br />
Between 3 <strong>and</strong> 5 P.M. He will cross from the American side to the Canadian side<br />
TIED UP IN A SACK<br />
Mons BLONDIN will also repeat his World-Renowned Exercise on the<br />
TIGHT ROPE !<br />
On the ground previous to the Terrific <strong>and</strong> Sublime Trip across Niagara River<br />
PRICE OF ADMISSION 25 CENTS<br />
Splendid Seats have been erected for the occasion, price 25 Cents Extra<br />
TIGHT ROPE Performances to begin at 3 P.M. GENERAL ASCENSION at 4 P.M.<br />
Niagara Falls <strong>pillows</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />
needle books<br />
The red pillow is a direct copy of a<br />
h<strong>and</strong>bill, circa 1860.<br />
I copied the text just as it was<br />
onto this slide so that you<br />
could read it.<br />
The Clifton House adds are on the<br />
<strong>other</strong> <strong>pillows</strong> <strong>and</strong> the little needle<br />
books have old images of Niagara Falls
Multicolor prints on fabric<br />
I don’t often try to print more than one color on fabric.<br />
The registration can be a problem. These two small prints<br />
were made by having the fabric stretched <strong>and</strong> taped down<br />
onto a support of cardboard. I then could use my normal<br />
method of registration with register guides at one corner<br />
<strong>and</strong> one side.<br />
Easter 1991<br />
The Schweickhardt House, Eden, NY
Screen prints made with rubbings<br />
For some time I had been using rubbings of embossed antique book covers to make prints that captured the historic<br />
look that I was after. I found that by placing a book under my screen <strong>and</strong> making a rubbing directly on the screen with<br />
crayola crayons I could make a stencil because the crayon would block the water soluble textile ink that I used.<br />
I had a collection of old guide books, many from Niagara Falls. I used them to create this dark <strong>and</strong> light “Log Cabin”<br />
quilt square on different shades of gold, tan <strong>and</strong> white. I blended the ink on the screen from black to brown.<br />
This is a detail from a<br />
45” x 59” hanging.<br />
It is h<strong>and</strong> quilted.<br />
I call it<br />
“Souvenir of<br />
Niagara Falls”.
Front<br />
I have used this book rubbing technique<br />
in many of the pieces in this presentation.<br />
These all have an element of rubbings in them:<br />
The Idlewood Girls Pillow, Carrie Pillow,<br />
The Buxton House hanging <strong>and</strong> much<br />
more to follow.<br />
This an<strong>other</strong> example of prints<br />
from book rubbings.<br />
You can see the entire book covers.<br />
I titled this “Book Purse”.<br />
It was in a national show<br />
of textile art. Approximately 11” x 14”<br />
Back
Writing Case<br />
Here is an<strong>other</strong> book rubbing.<br />
This writing case had a notepaper inside<br />
as well as a place for pens <strong>and</strong> pencils,<br />
envelopes, stamps <strong>and</strong> an address book.<br />
It closes with a ribbon tie.<br />
I thought that Dickens was an appropriate<br />
subject for the cover.
The front <strong>and</strong> backs of the<br />
pages were sewn together,<br />
face to face, turned <strong>and</strong> h<strong>and</strong><br />
quilted.<br />
Buffalo Album<br />
This soft album was inspired by an actual old<br />
Guide book of Buffalo, NY.<br />
The cover was made with a rubbing of the<br />
original book.<br />
The small illustrations on the six pages of this<br />
album were painted onto the screens with<br />
screen drawing fluid, screen filler was spread<br />
over them to make the stencils that were used<br />
to print the pages.
Tumbling Blocks<br />
I loved the way that the book<br />
rubbings looked when they were<br />
printed. Blending the colors (black<br />
<strong>and</strong> magenta) made them even<br />
more interesting. I started to make<br />
a series of works that were of<br />
traditional quilt bocks created with<br />
book rubbings.<br />
Three diamonds were laid out on<br />
the screen with a seam allowance<br />
between each. The rubbings were<br />
made in these diamonds. The three<br />
were printed onto different colored<br />
fabrics as one print. Then they were<br />
cut apart <strong>and</strong> assembled to make<br />
this hanging. Machine quilted.
Tumbling Blocks II<br />
I used the same screen to print a different<br />
piece. This time I used brown ink that<br />
blended with orange. The fabrics were in<br />
a lighter range of colors.<br />
This can be a wall hanging or<br />
a table runner.<br />
It is machine quilted.<br />
There is a casing on the back<br />
that could hold a rod for hanging.
Fan Runner<br />
I made this h<strong>and</strong> quilted table runner/hanging early on in this series.<br />
It sold quickly to the owner of Gallerie D’Accord on Chautauqua Lake.<br />
I had been represented by that gallery for many years, I had a one man show there in 1986.<br />
A Chautauqua quilt, <strong>pillows</strong>, framed <strong>textiles</strong> <strong>and</strong> works on paper filled the gallery that summer.<br />
Many of them were sold at that time.
Twin size quilt made with book rubbings<br />
I used the nine patch<br />
idea for this quilt.<br />
Each small square<br />
was a different rubbing.<br />
I printed the larger<br />
nine squares onto blue,<br />
pink, beige <strong>and</strong> lavender<br />
Fabrics with ink that<br />
blended blue to magenta.<br />
It is machine quilted.<br />
Details of quilt
Created with rubbings of<br />
book bindings this is a<br />
simple print in brown on<br />
three shades of gold.<br />
H<strong>and</strong> quilted.<br />
Bindings
Framed Fans <strong>and</strong> Pillows<br />
This piece is mounted onto a foam core board<br />
<strong>and</strong> framed with a simple black metal frame.<br />
Black to magenta ink was used to print onto<br />
many colors of fabric. H<strong>and</strong> quilted.<br />
The <strong>pillows</strong> were printed with the same screen<br />
with a citron colored ink. Machine quilted.
Spider Web<br />
This is an unfinished piece, It has been h<strong>and</strong> quilted <strong>and</strong> the binding has been sewn on.<br />
I will probably finish it – someday.
Amethyst - framed<br />
Later I decided to use traditional<br />
quilt patterns made with rubbings<br />
to make framed art pieces.<br />
I assembled the squares, added<br />
Borders <strong>and</strong> then h<strong>and</strong> quilted them.<br />
I sewed an<strong>other</strong> piece of fabric on<br />
Three sides to the front to make a<br />
sort of pillow case. A piece of acid<br />
free foam core board was slipped<br />
inside <strong>and</strong> the fourth side was<br />
stitched closed by h<strong>and</strong>.<br />
I framed these with metal frames<br />
that kept the glass separated<br />
from the art work.<br />
I did a series of these <strong>and</strong> had a show<br />
of them at the Point of View Gallery,<br />
Williamsville, NY. 1984
Basket of Flowers<br />
For this small hanging (12” x 20”) I made<br />
a drawing fluid <strong>and</strong> screen filler stencil on<br />
my screen <strong>and</strong> then made rubbings<br />
inside the stencil. It is printed with<br />
purple ink <strong>and</strong> h<strong>and</strong> quilted.
Mexican Star<br />
I used drawing fluid <strong>and</strong><br />
screen filler again to make a<br />
stencil that blocked out all of the<br />
star shapes. Then I made<br />
rubbings in the remaining areas.<br />
I like the way that the dark<br />
diagonal strips seem to be<br />
on top.<br />
The ink blends black to<br />
magenta. This is h<strong>and</strong> quilted.<br />
It once hung in the Albright-<br />
Knox Gallery in Buffalo, NY.<br />
It is now at home in Cody, WY
Both shiny <strong>and</strong> dull fabrics<br />
were used in this piece.<br />
Again, I made a screen filler<br />
stencil to help define the<br />
pattern.<br />
The ink blends from blue<br />
to magenta.<br />
It is one of my favorite pieces<br />
<strong>and</strong> a dear friend bought it<br />
from me.<br />
Morning Glory
The Little Giant<br />
An<strong>other</strong> piece, under glass.<br />
The rubbings are printed<br />
in shades of blue <strong>and</strong> gray.<br />
Stephen Douglas: “The Little<br />
Giant”<br />
“The Little Giant,” a quilt block<br />
with many pieces, refers to<br />
Stephen Douglas, (1813-1861), a<br />
noted orator <strong>and</strong> debater, who<br />
was Lincoln’s political opponent<br />
in the 1860 presidential election.<br />
The block's name recalls<br />
Douglas’ nickname, a reference<br />
to his diminutive stature. The<br />
same block has also been<br />
published as,<br />
“Heart’s Desire.”<br />
from quiltersmuse.com
In 1986, I was invited by the<br />
Buffalo Seminary to have a<br />
one man show in the Larkin<br />
House. A purchase award was<br />
included in this invitation.<br />
This piece was purchased by<br />
the school as part of their<br />
Colby program. It still hangs<br />
there.<br />
It is a combination of drawing<br />
fluid/ screen filler stencil <strong>and</strong><br />
book rubbings on various red<br />
fabrics. It is printed in shades<br />
of red <strong>and</strong> h<strong>and</strong> quilted.<br />
Bleeding Heart
Nine Patch – two color variations<br />
Nine patch is such a simple, traditional pattern. I used drawing fluid <strong>and</strong> screen<br />
filler to make the two squares. One had 5 <strong>and</strong> one had 4 blocked out squares.<br />
Rubbings were made in the open areas. They were printed, assembled<br />
<strong>and</strong> h<strong>and</strong> quilted.
Gr<strong>and</strong>m<strong>other</strong>’s Garden<br />
An<strong>other</strong> traditional<br />
quilt pattern printed<br />
so that the ink would<br />
blend to make the dark<br />
diagonal areas.<br />
Screen filler stencil<br />
with rubbings.<br />
H<strong>and</strong> quilted.<br />
Under glass.
Memorial<br />
Not all rubbings have to be made from<br />
book covers.<br />
I was commissioned by the Town of<br />
Hamburg to create a memorial for a very<br />
special woman. She had been a collector<br />
of funeral art <strong>and</strong> I thought to remember<br />
her with traditional weeping willow trees.<br />
I cut out small pieces of cardboard <strong>and</strong><br />
glued them onto a base to make a raised<br />
image that I could use to make a rubbing.<br />
The border <strong>and</strong> the letters were all done<br />
the same way.<br />
I printed onto many colors of fabric with<br />
black ink to make this memorial.<br />
It is machine quilted.
detail<br />
Queen Anne’s Lace Quilt<br />
I made some rubbings directly on a screen. This time I<br />
used Queen Anne’s Lace. It was dried flat under some weight.<br />
I did the rubbing of each blossom <strong>and</strong> stem individually,<br />
one at a time.<br />
I printed onto various fabrics that were shades of off-white.<br />
I used different shades of gray ink.<br />
After the blocks were assembled <strong>and</strong> sewn together as a quilt<br />
I machine quilted them along the vertical stems.
On to Other Things…<br />
In 1995 I became a Roycroft Renaissance Artisan.<br />
I have always been interested in the Arts <strong>and</strong> Crafts Movement.<br />
I devoted myself to printing works on paper instead of fabric.<br />
To be honest, I was tired of all of the sewing – now I sew just for pleasure.<br />
Rag dolls <strong>and</strong> doll clothes were my next obsession as well as clothes<br />
for my four gr<strong>and</strong> daughters.<br />
After that, I rid myself of tons of fabric scraps <strong>and</strong> sewing notions.<br />
My sewing room now features my collection of antique, toy sewing machines.<br />
I occasionally go up there to make some new curtains or do some mending.<br />
<strong>Dorothy</strong> <strong>Markert</strong>, 2009