Latest news with #quilting
New York Times
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Four Generations of Quilts Come Out of the Family ‘Treasure Chest'
Still living cheerfully in her own home in Fairfield, Texas, at age 98, Laverne Brackens likes to entertain a steady stream of visitors. She has a fast-talking health-care aide who comes by three times a week. She has two younger sisters, one younger brother, five children and more than 100 grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren, most of whom also live in and around her hometown, and find their way to her front porch. Then there are the quilt collectors who have been making the pilgrimage to her home along a county highway since at least 2011, when a National Heritage fellowship raised Brackens's profile. They come to see her energetically colored, highly improvisational, feel-good quilts. They can spot her house from a distance, thanks to bright vinyl signs hanging on the metal fence in front commemorating the mayor's proclamation of Oct. 13, 2022, as 'Laverne Brackens Day.' But none of these visitors, not even her closest relatives, are allowed to open an old wood trunk with brass buckles that sits on the floor in a corner next to her sewing table. 'It's her treasure chest,' says Sherry Byrd, 74, Brackens's daughter, who is the next-best-known living quilter in Fairfield. 'And, no,' Byrd said of the trunk, 'I'm not allowed to touch it without permission.' Brackens calls this her 'four-generations trunk,' and it contains her own quilts, rolled into bundles, alongside quilts made by her mother, Gladys Henry; her daughter Sherry; and several grandchildren. On top of one stack is a medallion quilt by Sherry that resembles a stained-glass window, its flashes of fiery colors barely contained by black frames. Next to it sits a puffy quilt that her mother made by cutting up and stitching together the velvety purple bags that Crown Royal whisky bottles come in — a gift from one of her son's hard-drinking friends years ago. 'He bet me $50 I couldn't make nothing out of these bags,' Brackens said. 'So I won the bet, and I've been making them ever since.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
The Review Geek
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Review Geek
The Quilters (2024) Movie Review – The redemptive power of art
The redemptive power of art The Quilters is a short documentary about several inmates in a quilting program housed at South Central Correctional Center, a Level 5 maximum-security prison. The men take us through the full process of their creations, which they give to foster kids. It's a heartwarming view of charming and important charity work. They spend eight hours, five days a week, in the special area where they create the quilts. You can see how that affects them in a good way, giving them a purpose. Some of them, like Fred, Chill, and Ricky, talk about their years in prison, and it's obvious how this program has changed them. It helps them develop empathy, reflects on their actions, and free themselves of their 'demons'. A few of them, like Ricky, have been there since they were young and were sentenced to life imprisonment. He entered the Center as a 20-year-old guy, and now he's in his 60's. The way he talks about remorse and losing important moments of his life is devastating. It's as if his sadness can pass right through your screen. Despite his terrible mistakes, the quilting program is his best chance at finding redemption and giving joy to other people. In a way, the documentary is also an empathy exercise for viewers, as it's necessary to see the men past their errors and as people who can change. Still, it'd be nice if it had just two or three more minutes to go deeper into why those chose the quilting program. It's easy to understand why some of them did, but it's not the focus at any point. That would contribute to showing what they expected from it at the beginning and how their mentality has changed upon joining. But the best part about the documentary is seeing photos and letters from the children thanking the gifts. A quilt might seem trivial to many people, but to them, it's a way of seeing someone still cares. And you can feel the men's raw emotions when they read the letters. It's beautiful to see their vivid smiles and how they might cry from joy at times. Sometimes, it feels like we're always being bombarded by awful and pessimistic messages. So, seeing this type of rehabilitative work also helps to restore a bit of hope in ourselves. The Quilters is proof of the redemptive and reformatory power of art, making it very impactful despite its short runtime.
RNZ News
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Soft materials mending hardened criminals
Chill in The Quilters. Photo: Supplied / Netflix The Quilters. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2025 Photo: Supplied / Netflix Prisoners in a level 5 maximum security prison in Missouri are the subject of a new and award-winning short documentary out on Netflix this week. The Quilters follows a group of men inside the South Central Correctional Center, where, every Monday to Friday they head to a special sewing space inside the prison and work on quilts to give to local foster care children. It's an intimate look at the men's struggles, triumphs and sense of pride in creating something beautiful while behind bars. Documentary director Jenifer McShane speaks to Susie.
South China Morning Post
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
In Netflix's The Quilters, prison inmates find escape and community in quilting
Independent filmmaker Jenifer McShane travelled to the US state of Missouri to make her second documentary about prison life, focusing on an unusual group of men at South Central Correctional Centre south of St Louis. The access she was given inside the maximum security facility included permission to screen the film for the inmates. Along the way, she learned an important lesson about what not to do when showing a movie inside a prison. In a 'rookie moment', McShane said in an interview last year, 'I accidentally started to go up to turn off the lights – because you always watch a movie without lights on. Well, not in a max prison. So they all rush, 'Jen! No, no, no.'' 'Aside from that rookie mistake, it was probably the most moving [screening] I've ever done because they were riveted, and they loved it and understood what I was trying to do.' Play The Quilters debuts on Netflix on May 16 after scooping up several awards at film festivals since last year. McShane reveals the healing power of art in the daily lives of inmates who have formed a quilting circle inside the Level 5 prison in Licking, Missouri. They work in a special sewing room where they make quilts for foster children in the surrounding counties.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Rising Stars
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Star quilts are one of the most valued gifts among Native Americans, often made for events to recognize someone special or who has made a difference for the Native American News paid a visit to the Santee Sioux Tribe in Flandreau, where quilters have been busy sewing together a timeless heritage that honors and respects anyone who gets one. Sioux Falls Rec. Trail expansion underway We recently told you about award-winning quilter Bonnie LeBeaux, who opened her own star quilt store in Rapid City. She has been making star quilts for close to 30 years, mostly as gifts. 'We like to be within our culture, we like to honor the achievements of our people, of our children when they do significant acts of achievement or valor. Graduation is always the biggest time of the year,' owner of Bonnie LeBeaux said. Unlike LeBeaux, Marilyn and Mae Allen of Flandreau, who are cousins, learned how to make star quilts just this year. 'I just thought, you know, I'll just learn, I'm going to have to learn,' Marilyn said. Marilyn says sewing together star quilts is a great way to honor her Native American heritage. She started in February after getting a quick lesson from a relative. 'I made my first one, took me about a week, it ended up being king size, which was huge, so from their we just started making more quilts,' Marilyn said. And she hasn't quit. These are some of her latest ones that she's posted on her facebook page to try and raffle off. So far, she's sewn 20. In a variety of colors, fabrics, and styles. But they must all contain a star. 'The star, I guess with our creation stories of coming from the stars; like remembrance of where we come from and acknowledging the star,' Marilyn said. Marilyn says she's gotten pretty accustomed to making star quilts in a short amount of time and now she can make one in about three days. Her cousin, Mae Allen, is blanketed with pride over the star quilts she's sewn together. 'Ever since I was little, especially at funerals, everybody from the community will display the star quilts along the outside wherever the wake is being held and seeing every single wall had a start quilt on it and how beautiful they are, it's just magnificent,' Mae said. And so is the meaning behind a star quilt. It's an honor to receive a star quilt. This one hasn't been gifted yet, but eventually it will be and when it is, that person should feel special. 'I feel like it's a great privilege, especially coming from a tribe not just one that your parents got and gave you, but actually coming from a community it's a lot more, like a bigger accomplishment or bigger recognition of your achievements,' Mae said. Like the time our former General Manager of KELOLAND TV, Jay Huizenga was gifted a star quilt during a special ceremony after he made the decision to move our KPLO tower off Native American sacred land in central South Dakota. A star quilt is also given away every state basketball tournament to an outstanding senior player who exemplifies the life of SuAnne Big Crow of Pine Ridge. SuAnne was killed in a car accident on her way to the Miss Basketball Banquet in 1992. The player is judged in the categories of outstanding athletic ability, leadership, character, sportsmanship and grade point average. But star quilts are gifted to people for a variety of reasons. 'If you're getting a star quilt, it's typically for different honorings; graduations, different milestones in your life, if a baby is born, if someone passes away typically people will bring star quilts and give those to people who attend the funeral, it really just depends on what the occasion is,' Marilyn said. But no matter what it is, to give a star quilt is to show the utmost respect, honor, and admiration to a person. If you were to buy a star quilt they range in price from $250 to $500 dollars. Marilyn and Mae will be hosting a star quilting workshop in Flandreau at the Tribal Headquarters' Community Center June 5th through the 8th. To learn more click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
