The Quilts are Back and Bigger than Ever!

Posted Apr 7, 2022 | Posted in: News

From Krishna Adams, Director of Visual Arts, Craft, Media, and Design –

Three adults stand in front of a colorful quilt decorated with floral and striped patterns. The person in the center wears a shirt referencing the 2019 Quilt Festival. The quilt is displayed indoors. — Margo Clark, Krishna Adams, and John Allen in front of Anne Yaneey Barrett’s Blue Ribbon first place winning hand appliqued quilt, *Flower Garden*

Last weekend Algood, TN was inundated with quilt and needlepoint enthusiasts who have eagerly anticipated the return of the Upper Cumberland Quilt Festival. In its 32^nd year (minus the break the last two years for health safety) the theme of the festival was “For the Love of Quilts” and this viewer was not disappointed. With over 490 quilts and quilted objects on view from 90 artists and owners, this was the largest showing in the history of the festival and the largest attended.

Festival Coordinator, John Allen said the ability to facilitate the festival growth would not have been possible without the strong and sustaining support of over 100 community volunteers. The festival exhibitions and events were spread over six venues including the Algood City Hall, Trinity Church, Algood Methodist Church, Burton’s Chapel Methodist Church, Algood Senior Center, and the White Plains House.

Several colorful patchwork quilts are draped over wooden pews in a well-lit room, showing various patterns and designs, including geometric shapes and leaf motifs. — Quilts made by Brenda Curtis at Burton’s Chapel Methodist Church

Saturday morning’s quilt festivities began by watching a traditional Bed Turning demonstration of “The Story of the Quilts” by Anne Barrett. Since quilts can take up a large portion of space, often in the past, as in today, quilts were spread on top of each other on a bed. Each quilter would then take turns presenting their work while sharing stories surrounding their quilt. Once a story concluded, the quilt could be rolled, folded, or “turned” and a new quilt would be visible and ready to be shared.

A variety of live demonstrations and workshops were spread throughout the day and quilt, material, and even button vendors were onsite to tickle the fancy and help lighten the pocketbooks of attendees. The festival also presented special exhibitions by three quilters. Bloomington Springs resident Brenda Curtis made her first quilt when she was 13 and since then she has made over 150 quilts. A sampling of her work was on display at the historic Burton’s Chapel Methodist Church. Quilter Cindy Rux from Baxter learned to sew from her mother at a young age. For 25 years she has honed her quilting skills and shared her techniques with students. A life-long learner and mother of five, Nettie Ford from Cookeville learned about quilting as a youngster but didn’t have time to dedicate to the art until her retirement. Since then, she has fed her creativity by creating numerous quilts from materials she saved over the years since then. Both Rux and Ford’s quilt exhibitions were at the Trinity Church.

The next few images are a selection of the fine-quality quilts that were exhibited.

A colorful quilt featuring floral and bird designs in individual squares, with a decorative border of flowers and birds. A blue ribbon and a yellow note are attached to the lower right corner, indicating it won an award. — Faye Daily, Baltimore Spring, hand appliqued quilt, quilted by Mildred Young

A quilted fabric art piece shows yellow daffodils in a brown flower pot, with a blue bird, a frog near a tipped pot, a garden trowel, and a blue dragonfly, all set against a white quilted background. — Baltimore Spring (detail)

A handmade quilt with geometric patchwork patterns in various colors, including blue, green, red, and yellow, arranged in diamond shapes on a cream background. The quilt features intricate stitching throughout. — North and South, Civil War Repro (detail)

A handmade quilt with a geometric pattern of triangles and squares in earth tones, displayed with a blue ribbon and a yellow award card attached to one corner. — Ann Holland, North and South, Civil War Repro, machine quilted quilt, quilted by Mildred Young, Blue Ribbon first place

A fabric quilt depicting two white swans facing each other on a pond surrounded by lush plants and flowers. A red and white ribbon labeled SECOND and a yellow paper are attached to the display. — Jacque Love, The Swans, wall hanging, large machine quilted wall hanging, Red Ribbon second place

A quilted fabric artwork depicts a white swan gliding on a blue pond, surrounded by green plants and flowers, with detailed stitching visible throughout the scene. — The Swans (detail)

A two-story red brick house with white columns, a small balcony above the front door, gray shutters on tall windows, trimmed hedges, and two pink flamingo yard ornaments on the porch. — White Plains Historic Home

An older woman in a long, cream-colored, old-fashioned dress is spinning wool with a spinning wheel in a well-lit room with large windows, a loom, and woven textiles in the background. — Susan Richardson

It was a treat to conclude the festival tour at the White Plains Historic Home (built in 1840) where they opened their doors to showcase antique quilts and offered docent-led tours. As an added touch, dressed in period attire, Susan Richardson demonstrated how to use an antique Great Wheel spinning wheel. One of the larger antebellum homes in the Upper Cumberland, over the years, the White Plains Historic Home has functioned as a post office, inn, mercantile store, and school.

The festival was supported in part by a grant from the Tennessee Arts Commission. Learn more about the grants available through the Commission here.

To find out more about the Upper Cumberland Quilt Festival, click here.