Artwork copyright Ross Palmer Beecher. Photo courtesy of the artist, 1985.

Bear Skin Rug Crazy Quilt, 1983

Ross Palmer Beecher
(American, born 1957)

Location: Burley-Glenwood Elementary, Port Orchard

ABOUT THE ARTWORK

Bear Skin Rug Crazy Quilt is an exuberant mixed media textile created by artist Ross Palmer Beecher. Comprised of an array of fabrics, textures, and colors, the surface of the quilt is dotted by black bear paw prints. Beecher states that she sees quilts as works of fine art more than as craft. She describes crazy quilts, which became popular in the late 19th century, as "a mish-mash of stitched random scraps and are as loose and free as a Jackson Pollock painting."

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with South Kitsap School District.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Ross Palmer Beecher is a Seattle-based mixed media artist. Her sculptural artworks are often composed as quilts and constructed of recycled materials. She describes her work as inspired by folk-art and "the joy of resourcefulness that has become a way of life."

Beecher grew up in the Northeast U.S. She studied painting, printmaking, and illustration at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). In 1978, she moved to Seattle and began making traditional quilts to relieve her homesickness for the Northeast. In 1993, Beecher started managing the art therapy program at the Bailey-Boushay House for patients with AIDS in Seattle. She continues to be part of that program and it informs her own art practice. Her artworks are featured in museum collections including the Seattle Art Museum and Portland Art Museum. She received the 2020 Twining Humber Award for lifetime artistic achievement.

You can watch a short video about Beecher's art practice made by the Washington State Arts Commission in 2008 with support from the American Masterworks Program of the National Endowment for the Arts.