Blocks and Strips c. 1980

Irene Williams put together this textile piece, Blocks and Strips, using found fabrics and threads, with a palette of browns, blues, reds, and a pop of minty green. I can imagine her piecing this together, shifting these blocks around, using color and pattern to find an image in her mind's eye. The surface feels soft and yielding. I wonder what it felt like to work on this, the textures of the different materials beneath her fingers, the repetitive motion of stitching. There's a block of minty green stripes that really sings. I keep imagining her going back to that one, using it as a reference point for the others. It's like a visual anchor. Williams comes from a long line of artists, all those anonymous hands making quilts over the centuries. And in her own way she's added something new to that conversation. This piece is an exchange of ideas across time, inspiring each other's creativity. It embraces uncertainty, allowing for multiple interpretations. It opens up a space of imagination.