PATCHWORK AND PEACE

 Mary Cassatt's  "A Woman Sewing"

copyright expired

Every now and then you come across someone who makes an instant impression on your life. 

One such person was Ruth Stoneley, quilter, fibre artist, teacher, shop owner, mother, friend and Churchill Scholarship recipient... to summarise her incredible presence...

Many tributes have been written, one of the most moving was by her great friend, Judith Baker Montano... see link at the end of this article.

I had the pleasure of meeting Ruth for the first time in 1983... to say that she made an impression can best be summed up by the following ....

PATCHWORK AND PEACE

As I climbed the many stairs

I felt it reach out to me

We sat, coffee in hand,

amongst the clutter

that only 'moving in' can arrange..

and yet, the feeling was there

all around us.

In her company

I felt surrounded by tranquility

yet knee deep in energy.

The patchwork of her life

enveloped her

not merely in the marvellous fabrics

awaiting her creative talents

but in her assortment of baskets

and interesting glass jars. 

An old fashioned urn sat in a corner

resplendent with rolls of fabric

spouting from it's top

where once there'd been steam.

She explained her life

and her ideas and dreams

and wove them into a quilt of visions.

She was so content in her life

at peace with the world.

Today, I met a lady and her soul.

© Crissouli

Ruth Stoneley portrait by Richard Stringer.

Ruth introduced me to many ideas, one being the process of printing photos on fabric, something which I had admired, but hadn't got around to trying... This is but one of her pieces.... part of a beautiful memory quilt.

Sadly Ruth passed away in May 2007. 

She lives on in the incredible pieces she left behind and the lasting memories of all who knew her.

Ruth Stoneley, Australia 1940-2007 | Quilt: It’s not all sweetness and light (detail) 1983 | © The artist | view full image

Ruth Stoneley: A Stitch in Time

13 July – 7 October 2013 | Glencore Queensland Artists’ Gallery (Gallery 14), Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) | Free admission

Opening Hours
10.00am — 5.00pm Monday to Friday
9.00am — 5.00pm Saturday and Sunday
9.00am — 5.00pm Public Holidays

To complement 'Quilts 1700–1945', the Gallery presents an exhibition of contemporary quilts by the late leading Brisbane quilt-maker Ruth Stoneley (1940–2007).

Links re Ruth Stoneley...

http://www.judithbakermontano.com/weblog/2007_10_17.html

http://www.artabase.net/exhibition/4820-ruth-stoneley-a-stitch-in-time

http://www.qagoma.qld.gov.au/exhibitions/current/ruth_stoneley_a_stitch_in_time