Nancy Packard uses quilting to share local history
A brief investigation will reveal that Chattanooga has an incredible quilting scene, filled with hundreds of active quilters, many of them organized into quilting clubs and societies. These artisans are continuing one of humanity’s oldest art forms—the roots of the quilting tradition can be traced back over 5,000 years to Egyptian applique, piecing, and quilting.
These ancient methods of manipulating fabric are being used in a modern quilting movement that is yielding some of the most beautiful fabric art the world has ever seen. Local quilter Nancy Packard is a part of this movement, and her quilts are nothing short of astonishing.
She began her practice in 2003 in Lincoln, Nebraska under the tutelage of her sister-in-law, veteran quilter Sharon Packard. Her first piece was a throw quilt made with a tube pattern. Many quilters use patterns to organize pieces of fabric into a finished design—in this case, she cut strips of fabric, assembled them side by side, and then cut them again to create squares. These squares were then organized into the quilt, and stitched together with other pieces of fabric.
She immediately enjoyed the process, and did not want to stop. Speaking about her quest for a challenge, she says, “I don’t do anything easy.”
She joined the Modern Quilt Guild in Chattanooga, and began to learn from other quilters. The guild is a family of quilters who help and teach one another. They helped Packard to make the transition from traditional to modern quilting.
They have weekly meetings and programs each month, where they teach different aspects of quilting, new techniques, from embroidery, to paper pasting, to slice and dicing, and everything in between. Their gatherings are fun for people who are interested in learning about quilting, or for experienced quilters.
She also taught herself by watching videos on YouTube, studying innumerable designs and patterns.
“I have always enjoyed looking at other people’s work to get ideas, and then turning them into my own designs,” she tells us, explaining her independent practice.
“I haven’t ever really had a master—I’ve learned from the work of other quilters, artists and sculptors, but I’ve always done my own thing. I started in the beginning with Civil War colors and patterns from that era. I have transformed my quilting style to impressionist and modern from the traditional style. I love to design my own quilts, and watch them come to life.”
Packard’s most famous quilt is based upon the tornadoes that ravaged the Tennessee Valley in April of 2011. Every part of the quilt has symbolic meaning. The center represents the tornado itself, the ring of red represents the destructive force, the green patches represent the damaged foliage, and the black patches represent the power outages.
There are eight points radiating from the center that represent the smaller tornados that were caused by the storm. The stitching is meant to represent the intense winds, while the purple at the edges symbolizes the community’s support of the victims. The quilt took six months of working over 40 hours a week to finish.
“After the tornadoes came through, I was really moved,” she says, explaining her motivation for making the quilt. “I was in two different areas of the city when different tornadoes came through that day. My quilt shop that I use, Sew Bee It in Ringgold, got blown apart.
“Fabric from the store was found all over the place, in people’s back yards, covered with insulation, some of it still soaking wet. The shop had a sale on all of the fabric, and I bought and utilized that in the tornado quilt. The quilt means a lot to me, but I haven’t been able to keep it in my possession.”
The Tornado Quilt is on display at the Bernina Store on Shallowford Rd. and can be viewed during their regular business hours.
In addition to her other projects, Nancy also does commissioned works. She can take any photograph, and turn it into a quilt. She has done a number of wedding wall hangings and other subjects, from Harley Davidsons to chicken coops.
“The love I have for modern quilting has opened so many doors for me in my designing on fabric.”
To commission a quilt, contact Nancy Packard at chattayakmb@gmail.com