The Magic of Quilt Camp
Land as studio, land as reverence, land as hope field
Dear Reader,
Last month I hosted a weekend beyond my wildest dreams, Quilt Camp. With the support of Green Door Folk School and Cedar North we invited ten eager quilters to experiment with fabric in the gallery, in the hoop house, and in the great outdoors.
Land as studio, land as reverence, land as hope field.
In the months leading up to it, I’d been dreaming about what it means to bring people here—to this particular stretch of Northern Michigan where the lake is never far, and the light seems to hold you accountable for paying attention. Quilt Camp began as a vision of radical hospitality: a space where artists could arrive as they are, not a retreat from life, but a practice of entering it more fully.
Each morning the fog from the rain the day before lingered, a sort of invitation to autumn’s beginning and for us to enter into creative rigor and delight.
What surprised me most was how quickly community formed. Within hours, the group moved like an ecosystem: Miriam cooking us the most amazing food, someone pinning, someone pressing fabric on the iron, someone ripping cotton into strips. The camp became less about what we made and more about the rhythm of making together. Quilting, at its heart, is a practice of devotion—it requires presence, repetition, and the willingness to stay with something, even when it feels imperfect.
The chorus of the machines, the slow choreography of care, every stitch a commitment to the liberation of ourselves in service to the whole.
With our crooked seams and brave entry points we took a break to hike one my favorite trails that ends on a bluff that overlooks the lake, June leading the way. Some of the students had never seen Lake Michigan before and it is always a delight to surprise newcomers.
Me and Ellen brought small generators and long extension cords that allowed for a pop up studio in the old hoop house as it trickled down rain all day. The next day the rest of the team was excited to join the hoop house crew outside and almost everyone had turned an outdoor table into their portable studio. A quilt is something human, a quilt is something a part of the land. A quilt is something a part of the everything.
The space held us in its own pattern. Within our four walls and our sharing circles there was profound grief, fear, sadness, and joy. Every quilt was a collaboration. With a friend who is a poet in Palestine, with the places we are from, with our children, with our fences, with our self doubt, and always with our fabric.
Having saylem celeste as my co-teacher was a lesson in not doing things alone. Watching them tell their story, teach, and share their wisdom made me remember why collaboration is key. Why doing things alone limits the story telling the people need to receive. saylem is skilled at hand quilting and teaching the technique and as I sat in my chair I thought - I’m so glad someone else is teaching this part. What luck to have co-teachers who excel at what you don’t, and have a story and history so different.
I am so grateful Ellen captured the weekend on film, because in many ways I feel lost for words. The weekend transformed me, as a teacher and a facilitator.
I’d love to bring this workshop weekend to other spaces, as well as teach it again here in Northern Michigan. Enter your info here if you’re interested in attending or hosting.
What felt so special to me were all the quiet unseen moments. Someone’s face lighting up when they finally figured out the next step. Taping our squares to the wall so we could somehow make sense of them. Seeing the goats and the baby cow and steadily watching life emerge that led us into our own lives emerging. Quilting as emergence.
No matter what I teach - quilting, dance, writing, creative business - it is always through the lens of anti perfectionism. I am deeply devoted to understanding how to resist the supremacy of being perfect. Unraveling this concept that is directly related to whiteness, straightness, and the patriarchy.
Quilting as an act of refusal. A refusal to measure perfectly, to be inside the lines, to know what we’re doing before we take the next step.
I sit today in endless gratitude to my co facilitators Ellen Rutt and saylem m. celeste. To Lauren, Libby, and Kristina at Green Door Folk School. To Miriam for our beautiful food. And to James and Julie for making a space for us to inhabit. I couldn’t have witnessed this much magic without this team.
A few days later I went back to the gallery to clean up and felt the call and response of the threads, the space, the quilts on the wall, the piles of fabric. I felt the lingering presence of each body of work, each body and mind, each body of attention.
I felt lucky that this is what I am called to do, to hold the space. To shape the container. To call in bewilderment and curiosity and togetherness.
Quilt Camp reminded me that creation is never solitary, it is a symphony of sounds brought together by practice. It is an endless vortex of trying, even when we don’t think we can. It is the secret house that appears in the patchwork. It is the greatest mystery, to sit at the sewing machine and let yourself be witnessed. Quilt Camp Forever.
In my Creative Business Ecosystem
If you want to experience the magic of quilt camp in a digital sphere - me and Christi Johnson are teaching Quilt in a Weekend live on zoom November 15 + 16 - registration is open and limited to 40 participants - BIPOC scholarships available and payment plans for all
The waitlist is also open for a writing class I am teaching Nov 1 + 2 : Pollinating Your Projects : A Two-Day Workshop on Writing Across Mediums - a study in bringing together all your many forms to make what seems like a jumbled mess finally make perfect sense.
Today is the last day to apply for The Practice of Attention Field Team - a group of people selected to help me promote my next book in exchange for an Advance Copy, a special Attention Audit Workshop, 20% your next class, and more
The newest episode of my podcast Common Shapes - Into The Broadcast : From Fragments to Finishing
New in Cody’s World : The September Digest, new dance videos, and behind the scenes of Katy working on the small shed to be the future Pilates Studio
To access Cody's World become a paid subscriber for $5/mo or $35/year : upgrade here
Paying Attention To:
My friend Amelia Hruby is the host of my favorite podcast Off The Grid, editor and producer of Common Shapes, and has just published a BRAND NEW BOOK
Grab a copy or buy a bundle to get access to the Off The Grid retreat she’s hosting Nov 5-7
I was lucky enough to get an early copy of the book and it’s so inspiring, especially for those of us who have made the jump off social media or are longing for more creative attention to be restored in our lives. Don’t walk - run to get a copy of this amazing book!
Huge fan of kening zhu’s podcast botanical studies of internet magic and love this episode on digital silence as practice
The latest newsletter from Tamara Santibañez, always touching in on so much, including this poem from Assata Shakur
CLASSIFIEDS : Looking to reconnect to your inner artist? The Hikers Way is a pod-class to get neurodiverse folks in tune to rituals that support their blooming. ART x CARE is an event exploring how caregiving contributes to and complicates artistic practice. Join us in NYC 10/25 - save 15% with FRIEND15, or PWYC Let’s take a soft sabbatical. Get the free Field Guide—listening explorations for everyday practice. Attune attention; return to aliveness. Looking to transform your creative process? The Artist Rebirth Cycle is a self-paced video course designed to support artists gestating new creative processes and projects
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Are.na
Email : info@codycookparrott.com
Website : https://www.codycookparrott.com