Interview with Kaffe Fassett, November 4, 2010

Interview Summary

Kaffe Fassett designs fabrics used for quilting. He describes a quilt he chose to bring for the interview because, unlike the vast majority of his quilts, he sewed it himself. He is known for designing quilt patterns and fabric; his quilts are usually sewn by Liza Prior Lucy, for demonstration or publication purposes. In 1995, Liza Lucy encouraged Fassett to start designing quilts and fabrics based on his noted knitting designs. The first textile artist to have an exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, Fassett feels personally rewarded by how the art quilt world has embraced his fabrics and quilt designs. Fassett does multiple crafts, although knitting is still a major part of his life. He designed his first striped fabric by first knitting a sample, which was then handwoven in India. The production of these fabrics by handweavers has had a beneficial economic impact for their villages. He paints his designs on fabric, which is then produced into yardage that can be cut up and re-assembled in patchwork. He generally designs one or two fabric collections a year.

Interview Keyword

Liza Prior Lucy Fabric - Striped Fabric design Handwoven Quilt design Sewing Knitting Victoria and Albert Museum International Quilt Festival Quilt shows/exhibitions Hand quilting Machine quilting

Interview LC Subject

Quilting--Patterns Quilts--Design. Textile designers Quilters Quilting. Quiltmakers Quiltmaking Quiltmaking process Quiltmaking purpose Quilts Art quilts

Interview Rights

All rights to the Quilters' S.O.S. -- Save Our Stories (QSOS) oral history project, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred from the Quilt Alliance to the University of Kentucky Libraries. Please contact the Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History regarding rights pertaining to individual interviews.

Interview Usage

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