Is quilting a hobby or an art?
#11
Super Member
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 4,688
I would say that most all hobbies can be considered a form of art. You are taking pieces of fabric, cut them into smaller pieces and then sew them back together to make a beautiful quilt. How is that not art? I look at a pattern and see different colors, often the complete opposite of what the pic shows.....so I am creating a different look. Is that not art? Yes, it's a hobby that gives me relaxation and stress relief. Yes, it's an art form because I am creating something.
#13
I consider it both. I guess it depends on whether or not you use your imagination. If you follow a pattern "verbatim", then it's someone elses "art" and you are just copying their works. If you change it to your likes/needs/designs/fabrics/etc...that makes it yours and makes it art. It is really an "OBSESSION" rather than a hobby tho! I was told that before I ever got into quilting...they were right!
#15
Power Poster
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Perth, Western Australia
Posts: 10,357
I consider quilting an art form. A hobby to me is like collecting teapots or trainspotting....(not disparaging either hobby, just using as an example). Any activity which involves putting elements together or manipulating them to create something of utility or beauty is art. If you take a lump of rock and carve a statue....it is art....quilters just have fabric as a medium. I don't see a degree in fibre arts or design to be any less relevant than a degree in any other field.
#16
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Indiana
Posts: 450
Your friend is exhibiting a common prejudice. If it is a "domestic skill" it isn't "art". Chefs are culinary artists but the home maker is not even if their offerings are of the same level as a chef.
Yes, quilting is an art. I, unfortunately, am not an artist. I try. Mostly I just sew but that is good enough for me and mine.
I have a friend who took a class in oil painting. She did one painting and it hangs in her foyer. When asked she says, "Yes, that is one of mine." She only did one but it is enough to make others call her an artist.
YOu are an artist.
Yes, quilting is an art. I, unfortunately, am not an artist. I try. Mostly I just sew but that is good enough for me and mine.
I have a friend who took a class in oil painting. She did one painting and it hangs in her foyer. When asked she says, "Yes, that is one of mine." She only did one but it is enough to make others call her an artist.
YOu are an artist.
#20
I am going to say both. Every artist starts with a blank canvas, ours just happens to be a pile of fabric waiting to be cut and sewn. Sewing is my hobby but it is my blank canvas to create something amazing and beautiful, rather it is just for me.
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