A story quilt pillow inspired by my Bubbe’s trip to Szczuczyn, Poland, to explore our family’s history. I was able to interview her about her experience and also learn much of what we know about our family history, immigration, and escape from Pogroms. For the color scheme, I was heavily inspired by Miriam Schapiro’s Wonderland, as the colors feel like how I feel, overflowing with story and family connection, warm but a little sad. Finding remains of the Jewish graveyard was when my Bubbe was most emotional, and that photo is what I decided to depict in my quilted pillowcase.
IN PROGRESS |
I first pieced together the background, a complex Star of David pattern found in an old quilt pattern book. Then, I bordered the piece in the green fabric I had, mimicking the overgrown grass from the photo. I topstitched on the gravestone remnants, then embroidered a phrase from my Bubbe’s interview that I found powerful. Originally, I was planning on embroidering in a dark green, but it didn’t feel right, so I switched to a light purple. Finally, I was able to quilt the piece and sew it into a pillowcase.
FINISHING TOUCHES |
I find this piece empowering and important for my family’s history. We are proof that Hitler and the antisemites failed. Living proof. I still have a lot of fabric leftover and plan on making a matching quilt. That was my original plan, but I didn’t have the time to make a whole quilt and instead decided to make a pillowcase.