ABOUT
My work sits at the intersection of fine art and traditional craft, utilizing the domesticity of the quilt to deliver a sharp social critique. For decades, my perspective was shaped by my career as a television news video editor—a role that required me to filter the daily chaos of mass media into digestible narratives. Now retired from the newsroom, I have turned my full attention to deconstructing those same narratives through the medium of the art quilt.
My process is deeply intuitive, functioning as a form of textile photomontage. I begin with an inspired element—often a provocative image or a symbol of "the establishment"—and allow the composition to reveal itself through fabric. I am interested in the contradictions that define the American identity: the performance of religion, the hypocrisy of politics, and the hidden rot behind masks of authority.
By converting these tensions into a tactile, permanent record, I reclaim the narrative from the ephemeral news cycle. For me, quilting is not an act of comfort; it is a confrontation. It is an exploration of the "quilted fringe," where craftsmanship meets contemporary discord.
About the Artist
Originally from Pittsburgh, PA, where his work is held in the permanent collection of the Carnegie Museum of Art, Shawn Quinlan now splits his time between his roots in Pennsylvania and the coast of Gualala, California. Since first sitting down at a 1949 Singer sewing machine in 1995, he has developed a "queer aesthetic" that subverts the conservative traditions of quilting. An active member of the Mendocino County arts community, Quinlan continues to exhibit his award-winning satirical works internationally, challenging viewers to look closer at the fabric of modern society.
