Art of the Personal

Art is often used as a tool to react to the world in which we live, to the political and social climate in which we find ourselves, and the issues and debates which shape our communities, countries, and ultimately our own lives. However, art also has a much more personal and equally important responsibility, to give the artist or maker in question, the opportunity to grapple and come to terms with his/her own life, and his/her own unique problems.

This is not to say that art should be merely an introspective, catharsis for the artist, but rather that some of the most personal, most cherished possessions in a home, are also sometimes the most wonderful pieces of art. In the Quilts 1700-2010 exhibition, many of the works on display, were never meant to be exhibited as art, but used in the home for a particular purpose. It is only relatively recently that items such as quilts, bed linen and pieces of embroidery have been classified as Art with a capital A.

For this reason many of these pieces have an honesty and a clarity of message that is lacking in works by professional artists. There is a freedom here, a freedom not to conform to the trends and fashions of the particular period, as well as an ability to say anything without worrying about the sensibilities of the age. If a piece is to be seen solely within the confines of our own home, it is often much more personal and intimate than a piece which is knowingly going to be exhibited for the entire world to see. Perhaps, also crafts created for the home give us a better understanding of the period in which they were created, as well as the people who made them, and their lives. Do we not learn more from a quilt lovingly created from scraps of left-over fabric, each piece with its own story, and own significance, than we do from an oil painting created in the ivory tower of art college?

All forms of art are capable of beauty, but the art of the personal has a certain added magic.