What That Quilt Knows About Me explores the personal and emotional power associated with the experience of making and living with quilts. The exhibition’s title expresses the indication that quilts have the capability of “knowing” or containing information about the human experience. Reflecting on this sentiment, the exhibition presents quilts as collections of intimate stories.
The works on view, which span from the 19th through 21st centuries, reveal a range of moving and sometimes unexpected biographies. From a pair of enslaved sisters in antebellum Kentucky to a convalescent British soldier during the Crimean War, the exhibition explores stories associated with both the makers and recipients of the works. On a quilt top from the 1890s, we find a surface bursting with narratives; in an example by Hystercine Rankin, a grid of small vignettes depicts scenes of family life defined by faith and toil.
Additionally, the exhibition explores how artists have continually drawn inspiration from and pushed the boundaries of quilt-making to incorporate surprising materials and ideas, inviting audiences to consider these objects as archives of personal human experiences. Dindga McCannon’s Mary Lou Williams, a quilt-like work, is created with paint, photographs, and fibers, as a tribute to the jazz musician and cultural environment of Harlem. Jessie Dunahoo uses plastic bags and yarn to evoke quilt-like coverings that swath the interior surfaces of his home.
In conjunction with the exhibition, the following recordings from the Museum’s Oral History project are available:
- Dr. Diana Baird N’Diaye, artist and Senior Folklife Curator, Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage
- Patricia Gorelangton, Hawaiian quilt maker
- Dr. Raymond Bellamy, grandson of quilter Dr. Raymond Bellamy
- Venancio Aragon, textile weaver
The exhibition is curated by Emelie Gevalt, Curatorial Chair for Collections and Curator of Folk Art at the American Folk Art Museum (AFAM) and Sadé Ayorinde, Warren Family Assistant Curator.
