Interview with Hollis Chatelain, October 22, 1999

Interview Summary

Quilt artist and designer Hollis Chatelain, whose quilt "Sahel" is featured in the 100 Best Quilts Collection, is interviewed by Paula Bosselman for the Quilters' S.O.S. Oral History Project. She discusses her time living in Africa and its major influence on her art and artistic processes. She describes how she dyes her own fabrics and paints her quilts, preferring to paint quilts over sewing them. Chatelain goes into great detail about differing cultural aspects between African and American cultures and why she is drawn to African imagery in her art. She discusses the technical aspects of quilt making and her other influences, such as color and nature.

Interview Keyword

African inspired art African inspired quilts African fabrics Fabrics Fabric arts African imagery Americans in Africa Artistry Perceptions of Africa Fabric dying Artistic processes Creative processes Technical aspects of art African women Baobab trees Artistic inspirations Influences

Interview LC Subject

Quilts Quilting Women Textiles Crafts & decorating Textile artists Decorative arts Women in art Africans in art Artists Designers Textile designers Family Africa Sahel

Interview Rights

All rights to the Quilters' S.O.S. -- Save Our Stories (QSOS) oral history project, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred from the Quilt Alliance to the University of Kentucky Libraries. Please contact the Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History regarding rights pertaining to individual interviews.

Interview Usage

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