Tulsa Modern Quilt Guild
Mission Statement
Our mission as the Tulsa Modern Quilt Guild is to create a community that promotes the art of modern quilting through education and community outreach, inspires creativity, and supports individual growth.
Tulsa Modern Quilt Guild, TulsaMQG, was formed on a whim in February of 2010. There were four people at our first meeting at Shades of Brown coffee house. We now have more than 90 members in our online community and guild, with around 40-50 people attending each monthly meeting. In addition to our meetings, the guild’s activities include quarterly sew-days, an annual retreat, challenges, bees, swaps, and various workshops and social activities.
We encourage anyone who’s interested to join us! Beginners are welcome.
A Book and A Blanket Literacy Project - Gathering Place, Tulsa, OK
What defines Modern Quilting?
TMQG is one of the 150 member guilds of The Modern Quilt Guild, MQG, (www.themodernquiltguild.com) and this is THEIR definition of a modern quilt.
Modern quilts are primarily functional and inspired by modern design. Modern quilters work in different styles and define modern quilting in different ways, but several characteristics often appear which may help identify a modern quilt. These include, but are not limited to: the use of bold colors and prints, high contrast and graphic areas of solid color, improvisational piecing, minimalism, expansive negative space, and alternate grid work. “Modern traditionalism” or the updating of classic quilt designs is also often seen in modern quilting.
So, bold colors and prints, use of high contrast, graphic areas of solid color, improvisational piecing, minimalism, expansive negative space, and alternate grid work. But again, different modern quilters work in different styles, so there can also be other trends that emerge within the movement that can incorporate some of these characteristics or not. These include:
Assymmetry
Pixelated Design
Pop culture reference
It is difficult to fully define a movement that is still evolving.
Statement of Non-profit Status
Tulsa Modern Quilt Guild is a non-profit organization under the 501(c)(3) umbrella of The Modern Quilt Guild.
As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, we rely on membership dues and donations to operate. We especially appreciate the support of our generous Donor Members and Business Members to keep our guild growing and thriving. Please consider shopping with and using the services of our Business Members to show your appreciation for the support they provide to our guild!
A brief history of Modern Quilting
Modern quilting has existed in many forms for much of the 20th century. It wasn't until the 2000's that quilts with a modern aesthetic began to appear in greater numbers and quilters began to describe themselves as modern.
A defining event occurred in 1998 when Martha Stewart Living featured Denyse Schmidt, calling her quilts a “chic, modernist aesthetic." For many quilters in the early days of the movement, this was a key inspirational moment.
Two influential books were published in 2005, Denyse Schmidt Quilts and the Modern Quilt Workshop by Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr. The first online quilt-alongs were established on blogs around these two books and awareness continued to increase in the online world.
The Flickr group Fresh Modern Quilts, established in 2008, provided the first online centralized social media venue for quilters in the movement. With that flickr group and many active blogs, the online world of modern quilting took off like wildfire.
In 2009, Alissa Haight Carlton and Latifah Saafir founded the Modern Quilt Guild giving the online community a chance to form in-person connections with other modern quilters.