In the previous post, we left Giovanna busy with her suitcase to be filled, and some travel to be done.

What was the content of her suitcase?
A bundle of quilts!
All the quilts she had sewn in the recent years. Large quilts, small quilts, mini quilts, top to be finished, flying thread…

In February 2020, Giovanna took the train from Mestre, near Venice, and reached Paola in Trieste.
At Paola’s home, the quilts popping out from Giovanna’s bag seemed to be endless. It was the first chance we had to see each other in person, and to look at all the quilting work done by both of us until that day.

What kind of quilts are the ones carried by Giovanna?
We met because Improv Modern Patchwork is our common passion. We could see similar things in our works, but once we put them together, we also noticed all the differences.
The same, but different. Is this the essence of improv? For sure it is one of the things we most appreciate. To be free during working process may lead, over time, to an identifiable customization.

Reading books of reknown improv quilters, we can see that almost all of them describe what improv is. Words are almost the same, but their works are not. At a first glance, they are identifiable one from another. Different ways to use colors, shapes. layout, quilting, become a kind of signature.

As well as modern patchwork, also improv patchwork is part of a bigger movement in continuous evolution, and it is experienced as a personal creative growth.
We are at the beginning of this journey: we are studying and experimenting. We are driven by curiosity and passion. In this website we will try to create some insights, and to gather other quilters, in order to grow together.

Hello!

The path towards the construction of this site started on the verge of new year 2020, when Giovanna and Paola first met, thanks to the common interest for improv modern patchwork.

We encountered on the web: both of us attended an on-line workshop, Improv Row by Row, led by Daria Blandina and Roberta Sperandio, and the sneak peeks of our work in progress suggested we had a similar taste for color choice.

Paola decided to break the ice inviting Giovanna to start a joint project. During the first phone call, while Giovanna was on the mountain enjoiying family holidays, Paola proposed to meet in person. Even if this required to take the train, Giovanna liked the idea of travelling, and started to fill her luggage. A new year was starting: the best moment to fill our agenda with new plans!

So, let’s introduce ourselves.

Since year 1997, Paola pursued her passion with graphics by use of drawing and photography, presented in solo and group exhibits. Her project of science communication based on creative pictures taken at the microscope toured Italy for some years.

In 2017 she discovered modern patchwork as a mean for expression, and started sewing wall quilts. Her first quilt gallery, “Doppio Trasporto” (walking on fabric fields) was shown in Trieste at Atelier dell’arte; other group exhibits include participation to Abilmente fair in Vicenza.

Giovanna familiarized with patchwork for the first time in 2007 during a journey in USA. The approach with modern patchwork came in 2016, when she noticed the freedom of creative expression possible with such technique. Curiosity lead to passion, study, research and experimentation: she always strives to learn and improve.

Giovanna’s quilts have been shown in the main Italian textile fairs (in Turin, in Vicenza) and in local guild group shows (in Treviso). Her work has been featured in international blogs and magazines dedicated to modern patchwork.

In this web site we will collect our ideas on improv, we will tell stories of joint initiatives, and we will go for a wider participation to this adventure.

… to be continued!