Quilts have historically been created to add warmth to a home, either on beds in cold months or as wall hangings. Often, quilt blocks employ symbols and prints that reference the seasons, land, flora and fauna of the creator’s surroundings. Similarly, this quilt incorporates images of geological formations, cave dwelling plants and animals, caving maps, and Palaeolithic motifs.
The Cave Bear's Dream uses layered imagery to explore the interrelated history of early humans and cave bears. This largescale piece features a hand embroidered map of a fictional cave system, completed after taking a course in cave surveying. Small symbols denote drops, water flow, bones, relics, and geological formations that viewers will be able to “navigate” with the help of a legend. This piece discusses the similarities between species, including handprinted textiles which overlay human finger-markings and bear scratches found in the caverns they depended on for survival. It reflects on the way our shared stories diverged- one into the modern era and the other in extinction.
This project was supported by the Edmonton Arts Council and the City of Edmonton.
