Laurel Izard
Angry Eagle, 2024
Vintage baby blanket, cotton thread, fabric paint, and batting 32" x 26"
From a series of quilts made with Mid-century baby blanket, contrasting the sweet with the angry wild.
Laurel Izard
My Soul to Keep, 2024
Vintage embroidery, cotton fabric, thread and batting. 41" x 29"
While this is from a photo of bombs over Rafah, this can be the prayer for any child faced with destruction
Laurel Izard
Now I Lay, 2024
Vintage baby blanket, cotton thread, fabric paint, and batting 41" x 30"
While this is from a photo of bombs over Rafah, this can be the prayer for any child faced with destruction
Laurel Izard
Tanks and Teddy Bears, 2024
Vintage baby blanket, cotton thread, fabric paint, and batting 40" x28"
American Childhood is the term I use for this series of quilts which start with Mid Century baby blankets collected on the internet. I’m looking at several things here and one is the huge contrast between the cute and sweet images we insulate infants with and the violent reality we are surrounded with as adults. Many show a cute and fuzzy world of baby animals that can insulate us from the from the harsher realities of the wild. Some tourists have learned the hard way that those are not teddy bears out there. Other baby blankets show babies and children engaged in idealized, sex role appropriate activities in an idealized picture of childhood that was completely unattainable for many.
Laurel Izard
Mad Bear, 2023
Vintage baby blanket, cotton thread, fabric paint, and batting 32" x 24"
The message in Mad Bear, and my quilts in general, depends on contrast, such as this play between a sweet quilt with embroidered angels and flowers with a screaming eagle. While eagles have barely gotten off the endangered list, I feel that an angry eagle is an excellent symbol for the dangers faced by the wildlife the world over especially when contrasted with the loving care given to our human babies. My hope is this message helps us look at the wild world in new and more supportive ways.
Laurel Izard
More Clowns, More War, 2026
Vintage baby blanket, cotton thread, fabric paint, and batting 46" x 32"
The message in More Clowns, More War and my quilts in general, depends on contrast, such as this play between cute circus clowns and a modern warship. This contrast allows us a perspective of the dangers and absurdity of our current political landscape. I ponder how the images we surround children with has helped to define who we are, or how we are expected to move through adulthood. I do not have answers but am using the kiddy version of life to take a stab at the world we are now surrounded with.
Laurel Izard
Guns and Prayers, 2026
Vintage baby blanket, cotton thread, fabric paint, and batting 40" x 30"
The message in Drones and Prayer and my quilts in general, depends on contrast, such as this play between a nightly prayer for children and various drones used in the war between Ukraine and Russia. This contrast allows us a perspective of the dangers and absurdity of our current political landscape, and my anguish about this war which has dragged on causting so many lives.
Laurel Izard
A Decade of Mass Shootings, 2025
Vintage quilt top, embroidered cotton and doll clothes 61" x 45"
A Decade of Mass Shootings is quite simply an embroidered statistical record of all the mass shooting in the United States over the last ten years. Abandoned doll clothes scattered across this blood red quilt are here as a reminder. I think it is important that we are aware of the toll our easy access to firearms has on the people in this country. While a majority of Americans are in favor of stricter gun control, nothing has been done about changing gun regulation.
Laurel Izard
Ticked Off Tiger, 2025
Vintage baby blanket, cotton thread, fabric paint, and batting 29" x 28"
The message in Ticked off Tiger and my quilts in general, depends on contrast, such as this play between a sweet quilt with cute little anthropomorphized kitties and ferocious snarling tiger. Mid-century depictions of kitties symbolized little girls and these are all depicted engaging in girl approved activities, such as cooking a cleaning, reinforcing old gender roles. I feel that the contrast between the sweet and the dangerous allows us to appreciate the dangers and contradictions faced by wildlife the world over when contrasted with the loving care given to our human babies. My hope is this message helps us look at the wild world in new and more supportive ways.
Laurel Izard
P.O.ed Panda, 2025
vintage baby blanket, cotton thread, fabric paint, and batting 38" x 32"
The message in P.O.ed Panda and my quilts in general, depends on contrast, such as this play between a sweet quilt with cute little anthropomorphized animals and a ferocious snarling panda. Most people think of Pandas placidly chewing bamboo and forget they have the angry potential of bears. I feel that the contrast between the sweet and the dangerous allows us to appreciate the dangers and contradictions faced by wildlife the world over when contrasted with the loving care given to our human babies. My hope is this message helps us look at the wild world in new and more supportive ways.
