Book Review: The Ancient Art of Appliqué
August 25th, 2013 by Morna
The Ancient Art of Appliqué
Collaborators: Tentmakers of Cairo, Jenny Bowker, Bonnie Browning
American Quilter’s Society; $19.95
If you’ve not had occasion to see the work of the Tentmakers of Cairo, this will provide you with a good background and give you a glimpse into how the men work. Tentmaker work, called screens or hangings, originally was the walls of the tents. The actual tentmakers, largely men, pass the skills generation to generation. Sadly their work is little valued in Egypt, and only 55 tentmakers stitch their appliquéd designs today. Slowly their work is receiving more attention, starting with Jenny Bowker arranging for the work to be shown in Australia followed by exhibits in France and Spain. In addition to the background on tentmakers, the book includes photos of 17 tentmakers along with designs and patterns for 18 of their designs as 14″ by 14″ pillow tops. The narrative was very informative, and I realized when studying the work that my sister brought me a tentmaker’s pillow top from a trip to Egypt. This has given me a whole new level of appreciation.
