Our Heritage
The project aimed to highlight how patchwork and quilt-making is one of the most accessible domestic arts, and the ways it is used to document experiences of everyday life, such as commemorating historical events, births, and deaths. The project also touched on quilting as a way of promoting mental wellbeing and supporting rehabilitation.
Volunteers were trained in interviewing and transcribing techniques, and spoke with a wide cross-section of quilters – 80 people across eight regions – many of whom have been actively quilting since the 1970s.
Interviews and photographs collected during the project were preserved on a website as a way to disseminate knowledge, skills, and to highlight innovative practices in UK quilting. The project also created a template to build the collection of interviews in the future.