Fragments of the Past
2025–2026
Cotton fabric · Improvisational piecing · Machine quilted
51 × 51 inches
Artist Statement
Fragments of the Past brings together remnants of earlier quilts and small design studies from different points in my practice. Some fragments remain intact; others are cut apart and reassembled, allowing separate ideas to become one composition. The color-dense center holds accumulated experience, memory, and the continuing act of making.
Quilted square forms ripple through the center, suggesting how past work continues to influence what follows. Moving outward, color gives way to grey and black brick-like units. Stitched into this wall are words including fear, doubt, habit, comfort, identity, distraction, control, regret, and shame—forces that can accumulate quietly and restrict change.
The work considers the pressure artists can feel to remain recognizable. It is a reminder that the past may inform the work without defining its future: earlier fragments can be carried forward while leaving room for risk, movement, and new direction.
Detailed and Process Views
Finished Quilt
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Size: 51 in × 51 in
Materials: Cotton fabric
Techniques: Improvisational piecing
Piecing: Constructed from fragments of previous works and design studies, assembled intuitively
Quilting: Completed on domestic sewing machine in 2026
Backing / Binding: Facing
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Fragments of the Past is built from pieces of earlier quilts and small design studies pulled from different moments in my quilting journey. The center is composed of these fragments, some left intact and others cut apart and reworked, bringing together ideas that once existed separately into a single composition. It reflects accumulated experience, memory, and the ongoing process of making.
The quilting in the center forms square shapes that ripple into one another, echoing how past work continues to influence what comes next. Ideas do not disappear. They shift, overlap, and resurface in new ways over time.
As the composition moves outward, the color gives way to a field of greys that deepen into black. This transition introduces a sense of structure and weight, forming a wall around the center. The border is built from small, brick-like units, suggesting something constructed gradually rather than imposed all at once.
Within that wall are stitched words such as fear, doubt, habit, comfort, identity, distraction, control, regret, and shame. Not every brick carries a word, and some are intentionally difficult to see. These words represent the emotional, behavioral, and social forces that can quietly accumulate and shape how we move forward. They are not always obvious, but they are often present.
I think a lot about how artists can become associated with a particular visual language. Over time, that association can turn into expectation. When the work shifts, it is often measured against what came before rather than being seen on its own. That pressure can create hesitation, reinforcing familiar patterns instead of allowing change.
This piece is a reminder to myself that the past should inform my work, but it should not define it. I want to carry those earlier fragments forward while still leaving room for risk, movement, and new direction. The work acknowledges where I have been while pushing against the idea that I need to remain there.
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Fragments of the Past is built from pieces of earlier quilts and small design studies pulled from different moments in my quilting journey. The color-dense center brings those fragments together, representing accumulated experience, memory, and past work carried forward.
The quilting in the center forms square “raindrops” that ripple into one another, reflecting how past ideas and projects continue to influence what comes next.
Surrounding the center is a wall of brick-like blocks that shift from light grey to black. Subtly stitched within those bricks are words like fear, habit, control, and distraction. These are the kinds of forces that can quietly build over time and keep me boxed in if I am not paying attention.
This piece is a reminder to myself that the past should inform my work, but it should not trap it. Growth comes from carrying those earlier fragments forward while still allowing space for change, risk, and new direction.