Monday, February 9, 2009

QuiltBarn Trails of Ohio

A grassroots art movement to dress up old barns with paintings of family quilt partterns is snowballing . The movement was started in 2001 by Donna Sue Groes of Ohio. Donna Sue set out to honor her mother's heritage and her love of quilting by painting a sqaure of her mother's favorite quilt on their old tobacco bar. Friends volunteered to help bring the idea to reality. The community was so inspired that the idea turned to crating a trail of "quilt barns." Local farmers quickly endorsed the idea and conated space on their barns. The needed funds were raised, and soon the first of 20 different multicolored quilt patterns began appearng on Adams County, Ohio barns. The concept continues to grow. Now over 900 quilt squares grace barns in 16 different states, and more are being painted every summer. Ohio, Iowa and Kentucky have over 250 in each state. Wherever they appear, most are the result of a county initiative that combines several quilt barns to form a trail like the 105-mile route created in Adams County. Some communities hire local artists, and others are painted by clubs or high school art classes that seize the opportunity to volunteer to helpcreate public art. The reason for the rapid acceptance of the concept is the squares not only honor a farm family, they also recognize the rural heritage that has been a part of the fabric of America since Colonial times. Learn more about the movement at http://www.adamscountytravel.org/quiltbarns.html. Also visit New York State's Barn Coalition web site at http://www.barncoalition.com/.

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