A quilt show like no other
After a marathon sleep last night, I finally feel refreshed enough to reflect on the experience of exhibiting at Carrefour EPM. For those unfamiliar, Carrefour Européen du Patchwork is one of the largest quilt shows in the world, so having the opportunity to showcase the ‘In Conversation’ exhibition there was both exhilarating and humbling. The only other international quilt shows I’ve been to are Quiltcon and the Festival of Quilts in the UK – each very different but still on a scale unlike anything we have here in Australia.
Carrefour EPM is set across four villages in the Val d’Argent region of France, with exhibition venues ranging from town halls to multi-purpose complexes and even churches. Free shuttle buses run all day between the towns, which makes it easy to explore not just the show, but also the villages themselves.
The Val d’Argent – home to Carrefour EPM (drone image supplied by Carrefour EPM).
One of the attractions to exhibiting here was the international exposure which very much played into the concept of our show. Being an Australian quilter, I knew that travelling to France to exhibit was a real opportunity, not just for me, but for my fellow exhibitors and Australian quilters in general. Our geographical isolation often limits the chances we have to display our quilts, so this felt particularly important.
Each day of the show I gave an exhibition talk, which began with me explaining how the lack of exposure to international quilts in Australia was the trigger for the ‘In Conversation’ concept. It made me laugh that every time I mentioned this, I would get the same response: “Oh it’s the same for us in [insert other European country]”, so a bit of perspective here folks:
London to EPM = 760km
Helsinki to EPM = 2,360km
São Paulo (Brazil being this year’s feature country) to EPM = 9,600km
Melbourne to EPM = 16,430km
With that distance in mind you can see why it was amazing to be part of this show that includes such a wide range of styles, techniques, and influences from across the globe.
Audience discussion during my daily talk.
The show provided a platform not just for the quilts, but also for meaningful conversations with visitors. Despite language barriers I think Caroline Hadley (who attended with me) would agree that audience interaction was one of our highlights. The variety of feedback we received – ranging from In Conversation being an audience favourite to never having heard of any of the quilters in the show – helped me see the exhibition in new ways. The discussions and reactions again reminded me how a quilt can be interpreted differently depending on the viewer’s perspective. Quilts that were favourites at home were not necessarily the most popular in France and vice versa.
In addition to the rewarding personal interactions, the atmosphere at Carrefour EPM was buzzing. The scale of the event was impressive, and mornings were absolute bedlam as busload after busload of visitors arrived to see the quilts. I really enjoyed that many of the venues had food tents outside that were run by local restaurants – homemade cherry pie at lunch was a real treat! The French take their lunch break very seriously though and, as someone pointed out to me, after lunch visitors will often forget they’re at a quilt show, so afternoons definitely ran at a more leisurely pace.
The back of our venue in Lièpvre with its restaurant tent.
Pictured above is the Salle Polyvalente in Lièpvre where we were exhibiting. It showcased the quilts brilliantly and, being a larger venue, meant we got to check out other exhibitions without leaving our own. Caroline and I both took the opportunity to see some of the other venues during quieter afternoons. I really enjoyed the variety of what was on offer from modern quilts – our exhibition, Victoria Findlay Wolfe’s and the travelling Quiltcon one – through to Amish quilts, the red and white quilts from the International Quilt Museum, art quilts and even a few broader textile exhibitions such as the German/Afghan embroidery initiative (one of my favourites), not to mention the shopping venue!
The logistics of getting the show to France and back is a story of its own. Packing and shipping 30 quilts internationally comes with its challenges, but it was worth the stress. The sight of ‘In Conversation’ hanging in the space made it all feel worthwhile. There’s something incredibly fulfilling about seeing an exhibition you’ve spent countless hours putting together take its place in a show of this calibre.
Another highlight for me was that several European contributors to ‘In Conversation’ were able to see the exhibition in person. After exhibiting in Sydney, Melbourne, and Deniliquin, it was wonderful for quilters like Daisy Aschehoug, Sarah Hibbert, Sophie Zaugg, and Sophie Thomas to finally experience the show and audience reactions firsthand.
Though our time together was short, it was a joy to connect and share the excitement of seeing our work on display.
Daisy and me after lunching in Saint-Marie-aux-Mines before setting up the show.
Ultimately, exhibiting at Carrefour EPM was a real privilege and an invaluable experience. I left feeling absolutely exhausted but also inspired, challenged, and more connected to the global quilting community. I can’t wait to see how this experience will shape my future projects and exhibitions.
And now that the quilts are all headed home to their owners I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who made ‘In Conversation’ possible – to the conversation artists; mini artists; the galleries, especially Catherine and Jane; the team at Make Modern magazine; Marion at Carrefour EPM; Crédit Mutuel and everyone who helped out on our supporter site – it’s been such an honour to be a custodian of these works for a time and to share them with the world.
