Shawn Quinlan

Shawn Quinlan

It all started with a 1949 Singer sewing machine given to me as a gift in 1995. As I began to experiment with it and became more involved I learned that I could use all of the talents which I've gained from previous dabblings in other forms of art and focused them into one cohesive medium. My ability has grown along with my passion.

My art has been shown three times at the Andy Warhol Museum where I received three awards, one being the Carnegie Museum of Art Purchase Award. I've also had work shown in France, Germany, Australia, and New York City

Fish Out of Water (detail)

From EXTREME CRAFT BLOG:

Shawn knows the value of a good story. By day, he is a video editor at a television station, with all of the attendant stress that comes with the job. Workdays filled with creating compelling narratives out of gunshot victims, car accidents, and human tragedy takes its toll. Fortunately, craft stepped into the breach. The gift of a sewing machine in the early 90's turned into a "eureka" moment that helped Quinlan tie all of the loose threads of his interests and talents into one handy package. In addition to serving as a stress reliever, Shawn's story (not to mention his crazy-great quilts) has garnered attention from exhibitions, newspapers, and television shows across the country. Quinlan's work is methodically crafted, with attention to detail that allows him to confidently show in quilt shows (My mother is a quilter--I've seen how merciless they can be). His raw material is taken from wall hangings and oddball commercial fabrics--not just from the piles of fat quarters and skeins of cow fabric that everybody uses. There is an archaeological quality to his work that is immensely appealing. Recently, the fine art world has started to pay attention, bringing him solo shows as well as a couple of group shows at the Andy Warhol Museum in his hometown of Pittsburgh.

There is also an improvisational quality at work in his quilts--something only rarely seen in a scene that is obsessed with order and pattern. This is underscored by a video that Quinlan keeps on his MySpace site of him piecing a quilt in stop motion. Boys will be boys, and Shawn Quinlan fills his work with his unique sensibility, then sends it out into the world to influence others.

For more about Shawn Quinlin, visit his website here.

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