SEAMSIDE: Exploring the Inner Work of Textiles

I think I’ve been thinking about time all wrong. I’m not sure it’s linear, but maybe that it accretes and infuses itself into itself. What does all that mean? This quilt says it better than I ever can.In this SEAMSIDE conversation, I share some stories about: ① how we need a new way of thinking about time ② the life cycle of a single garment ③ how we can tend and nourish the past→ Get your free trial to the QUILTY NOOK → See images and more at the EPISODE WEBSITE → Follow Zak on INSTAGRAM

Talking to Kathryn Greenwood Swanson is like completing an electrical circuit that you hadn’t realized was open. Big ideas just light up this entire conversation. Kathryn and I catch up on the one year anniversary of our SEAMSIDE chat to catch up on everything that’s happened since we last talked. If you haven’t heard our first conversation, Kathryn runs a thriving creative reuse shop in Turner Falls, Massachusetts called Swanson’s Fabric, and you can find it here. In that conversation we talked about: the role of the communal stashhouse, the shame so often associated with our fabric stashes, and how to start your own secondhand fabric store like Swansons.In this SEAMSIDE conversation, Kathryn and I talk about: ① how to work with the energy of objects ② fixing the entire world in one fell swoop ③ our dreams for a cross-country multi-city quilty bus tour→ Get your free trial to the QUILTY NOOK → See images and more at the EPISODE WEBSITE → Follow Zak on INSTAGRAM

Talking to Kathryn Greenwood Swanson is like completing an electrical circuit that you hadn’t realized was open. Big ideas just light up this entire conversation. Kathryn and I catch up on the one year anniversary of our SEAMSIDE chat to catch up on everything that’s happened since we last talked. If you haven’t heard our first conversation, Kathryn runs a thriving creative reuse shop in Turner Falls, Massachusetts called Swanson’s Fabric, and you can find it here. In that conversation we talked about: the role of the communal stashhouse, the shame so often associated with our fabric stashes, and how to start your own secondhand fabric store like Swansons.In this SEAMSIDE conversation, Kathryn and I talk about: ① how to work with the energy of objects ② fixing the entire world in one fell swoop ③ our dreams for a cross-country multi-city quilty bus tour→ Get your free trial to the QUILTY NOOK → See images and more at the EPISODE WEBSITE → Follow Zak on INSTAGRAM

Every time Woomin’s work pops up in my feed it’s a quilty dopamine hit. Her appliqued wall pieces depict scenes from her life in Queens New York and back home in Korea. And you don’t have to see very many of her pieces to realize that her world is abundant in story-telling objects and almost completely devoid of pesky and interfering humans. To hear her talk about how in her previous sculpture practice, she often felt alone, solo on stage, but now having connected with fabric, she never feels alone surrounded by the rich narratives textiles carry. In this SEAMSIDE conversation, Woomin and I discuss: ① why objects make better story-tellers than humans ② how to capture a sense of home no matter where you may be ③ what our daily spaces reveal about usWHY LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE?Woomin Kim shares her journey from sculpture to textile collage, using fabric to narrate personal and communal stories. Central to Woomin’s work are the themes of home, identity, and the unseen labor embedded in everyday objects and environments. → Get your free trial to the QUILTY NOOK → See images and more at the EPISODE WEBSITE → Follow Zak on INSTAGRAM

This textile piece, OUR CHILDREN, that we’re talking about today explores how we’re taught about our racial identity, gender, and sexuality from a young age. It’s a part of a collection I’m calling Southern White Amnesia which explores the stories that Southern white families tell (and don't tell) about their own family histories.In this SEAMSIDE conversation, I share thoughts about: ① the first time I realized I was White ② the lingering legacy of off-handed comments ③ how to reprogram all those internal messages→ Get your free trial to the QUILTY NOOK → See images and more from this episode with SEAMSIDE EXTRAS → Learn more about Zak

The casual Instagram scroller would be forgiven if they scrolled past one of Rachel’s patchwork pieces and assumed it was something generated by artificial intelligence. But AI can only dream of creating the real-world objects of beauty that Rachel creates. They capture light and color, breeze and the occasional animal slops.In this dreamy SEAMSIDE conversation, textile artist and photographer Rachel Hayes and I discuss:① the rewards and perils of public art pieces ② the intangible and metaphysical layers of a quilt ③ how to collaborate with our physical environmentWHY LISTEN TO THIS EPISODEDiscover how Rachel Hayes creatively merges textiles with architecture and nature, challenging traditional perceptions of quilting and fabric art. Her journey from traditionally small-scale quilt patterns to expansive outdoor installations reveals the boundless possibilities of textiles in artHELPFUL LINKS→ Get your free trial to the QUILTY NOOK → See images and more from this episode with SEAMSIDE EXTRAS → Learn more about Zak

In this episode, I share a collection of stories behind SNAKE HANDLER, a large banner I made featuring a writhing white snake. It’s really a three-part story about wrestling, specifically wrestling with identity, privilege, and role in the struggle for racial justice. I share personal reflections on understanding and confronting my privilege, recommending reading suggestions, sharing two strategies I use to address biases and hurtful statements, and encouraging us to take active roles in addressing racial inequality.Get more free resources with this episode with SEAMSIDE EXTRAS! Click on the link below to access: https://www.zakfoster.com/seamside/snakehandlerHELPFUL LINKS→ Join the QUILTY NOOK https://nook.zakfoster.com/→ Weekly Email Goodies from Zak https://nook.zakfoster.com/newsletter/→ Follow Zak on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/zakfoster.quilts→ Email me zak@zakfoster.com

Leslie Rogers is an unpinnable butterfly of a human. Her creative practice flits from quilts to performance to garment-making to puppetry. She’s a deeply thoughtful artist whose often whimsical or jarring pieces are underpinned by hours of historical research. Leslie and I met at Penland, and if her name sounds familiar, it’s because she came up in my conversation recently with Paolo Arao. That episode, HOW TO BRING IT ALL TOGETHER is a treat in and of itself and I’d encourage you to give that one a listen too. In this conversation, Leslie and I discuss: ①how to set fire to quilts without burning them up ② how to make quilts float on water, the old-fashioned way③ the nonhierarchical thingness of thingsWHY LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE?Leslie Rogers merges quilts with performance, breathing life into textiles and exploring profound historical and social narratives that create rich story-telling that often belies a whimsical appearanceSEAMSIDE EXTRAS: Get more out of this episode! Find free resources like images, reflection questions, and more, all at the website below: https://www.zakfoster.com/seamside/leslie/HELPFUL RESOURCES→ Join the QUILTY NOOK: A Curious (and Sometimes Feral) Online Textile Community https://nook.zakfoster.com/→ Top Ten SEAMSIDE Episodes Guide https://gift.zakfoster.com/pzp→ Weekly Email Goodies from Zak https://nook.zakfoster.com/newsletter/→ Visit Zak’s website https://www.zakfoster.com/→ Follow Zak on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/zakfoster.quilts

As you may have heard the NOOK had our first in-person gathering recently called a HUDDLE. As part of this gathering, I asked participants to share what they were thinking about over the weekend. Funny enough in this old house, there was an old wooden phone booth that provided just enough privacy for us to sit and speak our thoughts into a small digital handheld recorder. What you're about to hear in this special episode of SEAMSIDE is a collection of sixteen short reflections: some are really vulnerable stories, but they’re each insightful stories of transformation.There’s so much more to this conversation! For images and journaling prompts and more click on the SEAMSIDE EXTRAS link belowwww.zakfoster.com/seamside/huddle-catskillWHY LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE?This episode offers a unique insight into the intimate and transformative experiences of quilters who attended the first-ever NOOK HUDDLE. These stories capture the essence of community, creativity, and personal growth through the art of quilting, making it a must-listen for anyone interested in the why community matters when it comes to making quilts.Special thanks to Shan, Agneta, Paige, Jacquie, Lynn, Nicole, Patrick, Lynanne, Cindy, Hannah, Jeff, Christina, Madi, Shari, Ronnie, Nathasha, and AmandaHELPFUL RESOURCES→ Sign up for Zak's Weekly Newsletter→ Free Video Tutorial: HOW TO MAKE A TINY QUILT→ Join the QUILTY NOOK: A Curious (and Sometimes Feral) Online Textile Community→ Top Ten SEAMSIDE Episodes Guide→ Follow Zak on Instagram

A few weeks ago, I caught up with quilt researcher and author Janneken Smucker to thumb through her new book together. If you haven’t heard our conversation yet on A New Deal for Quilts, I recommend you go back and catch that episode first, and then come join me for this conversation.Because today we’re going behind the scenes, behind the book, and into the International Quilt Museum itself. I’m joined by the curator of International collections at IQM, Marin Hanson, to hear what it was like to put together the exhibition for A New Deal for Quilts. I know very little about how curators pull off such a quilt feat, so I had all kinds of questions.In this conversation Marin and I discuss: ① a curators calculus for choosing the perfect quilts ② the significance of feed sacks in quilt-making ③ the impact of quilts on the human experienceYou can see images of quilts we discuss on the episode websiteWHY LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE?Listeners interested in textiles, history, or art will find this episode particularly engaging. Marin's insights provide a unique perspective on the curation process and the deep connections between quilts and cultural narratives.REFLECTION PROMPTSTextiles in Personal Life: Think about a textile (like a quilt, blanket, or garment) that holds special meaning in your life. What story does it tell, and how does it connect you to your personal or cultural history?Art as a Historical Lens: How can art forms like quilting offer unique insights into historical events and societal changes? Reflect on the role of everyday objects in shaping and preserving our understanding of the past.Sustainability in Textiles: The use of feed sacks in quilting is a testament to resourcefulness and sustainability. How can we apply similar principles of reuse and creativity in our current approach to textiles and fashion?HELPFUL RESOURCES→ Free Video Tutorial: HOW TO MAKE A TINY QUILT→ Join the QUILTY NOOK: A Curious (and Sometimes Feral) Online Textile Community→ Top Ten SEAMSIDE Episodes Guide→ Weekly Email Goodies from Zak→ Visit Zak’s website→ Follow Zak on InstagramABOUT SEAMSIDEHosted by quilt-maker Zak Foster, we explore how working with cloth has changed who we are as people, what we call on the show the inner work of textiles. Zak speaks with a wide variety of textile artists from quilters to embroiderers, from activists to educators, writers, and collectors.DON’T MISS AN EPISODE👇Subscribe to SEAMSIDE for heartfelt stories and meaningful explorations of the human world of textiles