JNCT14

I am working on a quilt for our cheer coach as this is my daughter's last year on the squad. She is 25 and I figured she probably would not want something that looked like it came out of her grandmother's house. I found a pattern called Urban Windows which was designed by Sarah Maxwell and Dolores Smith. I like the way it is coming out and I did a little reading on the modern quilting trend. By a definition from Craftsy, modern quilts are:
•Bold colors and prints
•High contrast and graphic areas of solid color
•Improvisational piecing
•Minimalism
•Expansive negative space
•Alternate grid work
•“Modern traditionalism,” or the updating of classic quilt designs

But as I worked on my quilt, I am sort of wondering whether modern quilting is just a way to get around the sewing skills that the traditional quilt patterns require (matched seams, Y insets, HSTs, bias, etc). Don't get me wrong - I am all for anything that gets newbies to start quilting before it becomes a lost art. But is modern quilting really a trend? Or a cop-out? Let the comments roll! Here is a picture of the quilt top for reference.

LAQUITA

I don't mind THIS quilt pattern or fabric at all. In fact I think it looks nice.

However I typically don't like modern quilts.I think for me its both the colors chosen and the pattern. Just last night at our guild meeting I saw a light gray / dark gray and lime green quilt. I did not like it at all. (LOL as lime green is one of my favorite colors too!)
It also was the pattern.

But I agree with you, if its what it takes for someone to get into 'the lost art of quilting who is it for us to say you can't call it a quilt b/c you used such and such colors or patterns

After all there are civil war patterns & fabrics
30's & 40's and reproduction prints (pastels) and traditional patterns
then you have the bright colored fabrics and the stack n wack patterns
and its all called 'quilting'.

So I think its just a matter of taste.

barny

I don't see a thing wrong. We are all made different, so we all have different tastes. Your quilt is pretty.

Jackie Spencer

I say to each his own, but personally I prefer the traditional patterns, I have been quilting so long I like a challenge. I have seen some"modern" quilt patterns and quilts I really liked and others I thought "What were they thinking"!!!! And as time goes by and our skills change I think we do too.

Holice

Interesting take on the trend. I made a comment and was quoted in an article in the Wall Street Journal newspaper.

bjchad

I like both traditional and modern quilts. I think that the salient feature of modern quilts is a minimalist approach. If done well that can be truly elegant and beautiful. But I think that modern quilts are probably more difficult to design well than more traditional patterns and may depend more on good color and/or print fabric design choices, so they may be harder to "personalize" with maker choices.

Jeanne S

Quilts are like art, some are traditional, some are country/rustic, some are modern and minimalist. I happen to prefer the more modern look, but it is a matter of personal preference. I will say some of the more 'modern' quilts are a real challenge for me, but I am a fairly new quilter. If the only quilting options were for the really intricate, detailed designs that you experienced, professional quilters do, I would never have taken up quilting!

Girlfriend

I don't necessarily think "modern" equates to "no matching seams". I had to match every single one of these in the one I made this year. The fabrics in this make it more of a "modern" quilt because of the "low volume" fabrics I chose.

This is my first "modern" quilt, and I do like it. Although, I think it's a matter of taste, personally.

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Tartan

If it is a quilt, I like it.

dunster

Love that sentiment.

I have seen a few modern quilts that I didn't care for. I've also seen a few traditional quilts that I didn't care for. Either one can be difficult or simple to piece. I do like the fact that modern quilts typically have a lot of negative space, which allows for creative quilting that can really show up.