TEXTILE HISTORY l q u ilt s o n v i e w
© Gawthorpe Textiles CollectionTHE QUILTERS’ GUILD
MUSEUM COLLECTION, YORK
GAWTHORPE TEXTILES COLLECTION,
GAWTHORPE HALL, PADIHAM, LANCASHIRE
T
heQuilters’GuildMuseumCollectionis an
AccreditedMuseumcollectioncontainingover 850
examplesof Britishpatchwork,appliquéandquilting.
Itemsrangefromtheiconic 1718 SilkPatchwork
Coverlet– theearliestknownBritishsignedanddated
patchwork– rightuptorecentpiecesbycontemporary
quilt-makers.Aswellasfull-sizequiltsandcoverlets,
The Collection includes miniature work, clothing anddomesticaccessories,aswellastemplates,toolsand
quiltingequipment.TheCollectionis heldinstoreat The
Quilters’GuildheadquartersinYork,buttherearevarious
opportunitiesforpublicaccess.Throughouttheyear,
therearedrop-inOpenDaysat theGuild’sheadquarters- mini-exhibitionsshowcasinga selectionof pieces,which
thisyearwillbethemedaccordingtotechnique(see
left).‘BehindtheScenes’visitscanbearranged,giving
groupschancetoseeeithera mixtureof objectschosen
bythecuratoror,alternatively,piecesof a particularstyle
ortypecanberequested.Forthosewhowishtostudy
specificitemsmoreclosely,individualsorgroupscan
bookresearchvisits.Throughloanstoothermuseums
andgalleries,itemsfromTheCollectionareshown
aroundtheUK,andsometimesfurtherafield,suchasa
displayat thisJanuary’sTokyoInternationalGreatQuilt
FestivalinJapan.Thereis alsoanannualQuilters’Guild
MuseumCollectionexhibitionat TheFestivalof Quilts
eachsummer.Thisyear’sgalleryis 20Quilts: 20 Makers,
a displayof tenhistoricandtenrecentworksfromThe
Collection,includingtheWellingtonQuiltshownonpage
44.Detailsof howtobookvisitsandnewsaboutupcoming
eventsareonthewebsite,andyoucanalso view a large
proportion of The Collection online.
http://www.quiltmuseum.org.ukT
heGawthorpeTextilesCollectionis theindependentcharity
of theRachelKay-ShuttleworthTextileCollections,founded
in1959.TheHonourableRachelKay-Shuttleworth(1886–1967)
wasa life-longcollectorof globaltextileandcraftitems.This
fascinatingAccreditedMuseumcollectioncomprisesover30,000
variedartefacts,spanningfivecenturiesandcoveringa wealthof
techniques.Rachelwasthelastfamilymembertoliveat Gawthorpe
Hall,anElizabethanmansionwhereshesetupheruniquetextile
collection.TheHallis nowownedbytheNationalTrust(NT)
andruninpartnershipwithLancashireCountyCouncil,butit is
stillhometotheGawthorpeTextilesCollection.Rachel’svision
tomaketheHall“aplacewhereskillsarelearnedandthingsare
made”is continuedthroughdisplaysof historicalitemsfromthe
collection,contemporaryexhibitionsinspiredbyit,anda supporting
programmeof workshopsandevents.TheHallis usuallyopento
thepublicfromApriltoNovember,butcheckfordetailsontheNT
website.Withsucha largecollection,onlya smallproportioncan
beshowcasedat anyonetimeandspaceis limited,buttherecently
acquiredBamfordCoverlet(seeright)willbeexhibitedintheHall
thisyear.Individualsandgroupscanbooktoseeitemsheldinthe
stores– thecollectioncontainsmanypatchworkandquilteditems.
It is alsopossibletobookgallerytourswiththecurator, as well as
o -site curator talks at a venue of your choice.http://www.gawthorpetextiles.org.uk
http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/gawthorpe-hall© The Quilters’ Guild Museum Collection
A ‘Wholecloths’OpenDayatThe
Quilters’ Guild headquarters in York.BamfordCoverlet,detail,1893.Thiscoverlet
featuresanunusualcombinationofcrazy
patchwork,piecingandappliqué,arrangedin an
overallframe(medallion)layout.Theembroidered
textincludesnames,andexcerptsfromreligious
versesandphrase,suggesting it may have been
made as a fundraiser