We recently showed Part 1 of the Modern Quilt Guild Showcase exhibited at the Houston International Quilt Festival.  With that exhibition the question arose,  What is a Modern Quilt?  We went to the Modern Quilt Guild website to get an answer.

Here is the short answer,

Modern quilting is a new and rapidly growing movement in the quilting world. A group of quilters applied their current tastes and points of view to this traditional craft and shared their work online.  Their fresh approach and new designs attracted sewers and quilters and the modern quilting movement was born. Modern quilting, like all art, changes, grows and adapts from quilter to quilter as they find their own voice. Modern quilts reflect each quilter's personality and personal style, and as the movement has grown, a modern quilt aesthetic, a set of principles that define and guide the movement, is beginning to emerge.

Modern quilts and quilters:

• Make primarily functional rather than decorative quilts
• Use asymmetry in quilt design
• Rely less on repetition and on the interaction of quilt block motifs
• Contain reinterpreted traditional blocks
• Embrace simplicity and minimalism
• Utilize alternative block structures or lack of visible block structure
• Incorporate increased use of negative space
• Are inspired by modern art and architecture
• Frequently use improvisational piecing
• Contain bold colors, on trend color combinations and graphic prints
• Often use gray and white as neutrals
• Reflect an increased use of solid fabrics
• Focus on finishing quilts on home sewing machines

For more on the topoic, head on over to their website, www.themodernquiltguild.com. 

Check out the slideshow for Part 2 of the Modern Quilt Guild Showcase Exhibit.