Reign In Art

When most people think of quilting, they picture groups of little old ladies hunched over floral blankets gossiping.  Mr. Ben Venom– the name speaks for itself– sees remarkable quality though in of course, heavy metal.

For the past three years, Venom has been mixing the traditional craft of quilting with one of the most extreme forms of music. Using old band t-shirts, his quilts have names like “Don’t Wake Me Lucifer!” and “Beast Fucker” and have been shown in galleries all over the country.

We tracked him down recently to talk about the art of heavy metal quilting and how in the hell he decided to start doing it. You can check out more of his work at www.benvenom.com & http://benvenom.blogspot.com

Ben and See You On The Other Side

First question, what inspired you to get into quilting?

I saw the Gees Bend quilt exhibition at the De Young Musuem in 2006 and was really impressed with handmade quality and designs of the quilts made by women in a very rural region of the American South. Then in 2008 I was invited to participate in an exhibition in Berlin, Germany and wanted to make a really impressive piece. Mailing paintings overseas costs a ton of money…so I decided to make a quilt from all my old Heavy Metal T-shirts. The result was (Listen to Heavy Metal While You Sleep)  a 6′ x 9′ quilt made from over 35 Heavy Metal band T-shirts sewn into a skull atop an inverted cross. It worked out great cause all I had to do was fold the quilt and pack into my carry on luggage. HA! No shipping costs!

Listen To Heavy Metal While You Sleep - click to enlarge

Where do you get all the old concert shirts?

The first couple of quilts contain shirts Ive had since my teenage years and others purchased more recently. Since, I blew through my own collection I have begun to ask friends and bands to donate shirts.  My recent quilt contains over 125 shirts with some donated, purchased, and the remaining few from my closet. I like the idea of using shirts donated by bands I listen to and from friends. This way the quilt is not just mine…everyone has a piece in it.

Metal shirts prior to Quilting in the Studio - click to enlarge

How did you learn to work with them to get the effect you want, jersey material is stretchy and kind of a pain to sew compared to “normal” quilting fabric?

Trial and error basically. I did a couple of tests with other shirts and got a feel for how the material moves through the sewing machine and stretches. I actually prefer shirt material now cause I am able to pull and tug at it to fit right into place within an intricate design.

Am I Demon? sewing spiral quilting pattern - click to enlarge

What kind of work did you produce before you started doing quilts?

Mostly mixed media screenprints, banners, and flags. However, I sew pillows with screenprinted images and have made a couple of hand embroidered pieces that I exhibit alongside the quilts.

Night Prowler Jean Jacket - click to enlarge

Night Prowler - click to enlarge

Have you ever considered creating your own fabric?

Yes…I would like to learn more about textiles in general. Creating my own fabric would be great addition to my sewing projects and could lead into different ideas for the future.

JUKI F-600 Sewing Machine_VENOM - click to enlarge

How long does it take you to create one of your larger quilts?

My first quilt (Listen to Heavy Metal While You Sleep!) took 3 months to complete. To learn more about the process I purchased a Quilitng 101 book and contacted alot of friends that are very knowledgeable with textiles. The second big quilt was Don’t Wake Me Lucifer and took roughly 2 months…I was under a deadline so it went faster. HA! My latest and largest to date (See You on the Other Side) dragged on for 5 months due to the excessive size. It measures 155″ x 175″ and is constructed with over 125 Heavy Metal band T-shirts. I have no rad Metal Tees anymore!

See You On The Other Side - click to enlarge

See You On The Other Side Detail - click to enlarge

See You On The Other Side Detail - click to enlarge

For those of us that are not familiar with quilting, how do you proceed from concept to actual creation?

I start out drawing in my sketchbook and work out my ideas before transferring the design to Photoshop or Illustrator. Once I have the file designed to scale on the computer I print out templates to cut the shirts from and gradually piece the design together strategically placing shirts together due to color and design. I then sew them onto a larger piece of fabric that will serve as the top layer of the quilt. When the top layer is complete I sew the quilting pattern onto the top layer, batting, and bottom layer.

Am I Demon? - click to enlarge

What are some of your favorite band shirts to work with?

Any shirt designed by John Baizley of Baroness works great…he is a very talented musician and illustrator! And of course designs by Pushead or Derek Riggs. For bands I tend to use the more colorful designs like Kylesa, Municpal Waste, and Toxic Holocaust.

Dont Wake Me Lucifer - click to enlarge

If there was no Black Sabbath what would there be?

Heaven with no HELL!

Iron Maid in the House of the Lord - click to enlarge