Mrs. Grace Averett's Quilt: Unconventional and Unexpected

Editor's Note: "Getting to Know You" is on display at Quilt House through February 6. To celebrate this show's run, International Quilt Study Center & Museum team members are sharing their impressions on select pieces from the exhibition. 

By Marin Hanson
Curator of Exhibitions

What a winner in my book and clearly by the viewers who chose Mrs. Grace Averett’s “String Quilt” as their winner. I am indeed biased as I truly love these everyday quilts, and even better yet, this one is a comforter also called a tied quilt. Everyday quilts that were made to be used could have been made very simply, humbly, and straight-forward---no need for ornamentation or elaborate design.

Why did Mrs. Grace Averett make her comforter this way? Did she make others? Did they all look like this one or did she make a variety of patterns? We shall never know the answers and can only ponder the questions.

Movement is one of the first things that strike me. You can image the waves or ripples from a boat gliding across the water. Start in the bottom lower right corner and follow the fabrics as they snake up to the upper left corner.

Her construction is marvelous in the horizontal layering of printed cottons and feed sack “strings” that create her strips. My gaze had been held primarily by the horizontal lines and the titling movement to the left. Only recently did I realize there is a vertical seam (or line) going down the center of the comforter. I love one printed fabric next to another and another and so on with just the right amount of a solid fabric. What about the solid orange? That’s the “punch” or “pop” for me. What do you think, did Mrs. Averett place those with intention or are they happy accident? Another place she draws my eye is the green printed fabric with 2 red flowers at the center of the quilt: planned or chance? Her ample use of the red ties used to hold the three layers together are visually striking. Why so many and what happened to the blank areas in the center?

Dainty, Elegant and More

Editor's Note: "Getting to Know You" is on display at Quilt House through February 6. To celebrate this show's run, International Quilt Study Center & Museum team members are sharing their impressions on select pieces from the exhibition. 

Red and Green Medallion, maker unknown, probably made
in United States, circa 1850-1870. Byron and Sara
Rhodes Dillow Collection IQSCM 2008.040.0118.

By Joy Shalla Glenn
Membership and Public Programs Assistant

Now why would I pick this quilt to write about??? It certainly is not me! It is dainty, elegant, delicate, refined, and petite. And I unfortunately, possess none of those qualities.

I am usually drawn to stronger, bolder, more geometric quilts. However, there is something about the graceful design that is comforting to the eye. I want to see the applique work up close. Can you even imagine doing all those leaves? And what about those tiny circles?

This was before the day of heat and bond. Yes, I know needle turn looks better, but, honestly, life is too short. So, I also wonder about this quilter. What was her life like?  How did she accomplish that monumental amount of work? I definitely need to see this close up.

Color and Symmetry

Editor's Note: "Getting to Know You" is on display at Quilt House through February 6. To celebrate this show's run, International Quilt Study Center & Museum team members are sharing their impressions on select pieces from the exhibition. 

Patchwork kimono, maker unknown, Japan, circa 1910-1930.
IQSCM 1998.003.0002

By Leslie Levy
Executive Director of Quilt House

The first time I went to Japan, I was 18 years old. I remember the men's kimonos as minimalistic, usually solid grey or black, but at the same time powerful. The women's kimonos were beautiful and complex; elaborate and made of colorful fabric - unlike this piece.

The symmetry and straight lines, emphasized by the long, narrow color blocks, of this kimono appeal to me. It feels modest/unassuming, yet the simplicity, combined with the earthiness of the print and the softness of the fabric give this kimono a quiet, understated authority.

Me, performing a traditional tea ceremony.

Floral Design

Editor's Note: "Getting to Know You" is on display at Quilt House through February 6. To celebrate this show's run, International Quilt Study Center & Museum team members are sharing their impressions on select pieces from the exhibition. 

Witch Hazel: Jelena, made by Ruth B. McDowell in
Winchester, Massachusetts, dated 2005.
IQSCM 2006.011.0001.

By Dean Young
Operations Manager

My career choices have always centered on creativity – whether it involved culinary art or crafts in general. A true hobby of mine is floral design. This quilt is an awesome explosion of great color and style in the form of an unusual floral centerpiece focus, something I like doing anytime I get to play with fresh flowers in creating beautiful arrangements.

The quilter mastered it in fabric and thread!

Star

Editor's Note: "Getting to Know You" is on display at Quilt House through February 6. To celebrate this show's run, International Quilt Study Center & Museum team members are sharing their impressions on select pieces from the exhibition. 

Lone Star, Sioux maker, circa 1900-1925. IQSCM 2010.047.0001.

By Kim Taylor
Collections Manager

This star quilt isn’t actually a quilt and that is one of the most interesting things about it! It might appear as if it is an unfinished quilt top, but lo and behold – the edges are finished so that tells me that it was intended to be one layer of fabric with a giant appliqued patchwork star in the center.

I did research with the Sioux and Assiniboine star quilters in Montana during the 1990s and I never saw a quilt quite like this one. This quilt is one of the earliest surviving examples of a Native American star quilt. It was gifted to prominent photographer Frank Fiske sometime between 1900 and 1920 from someone on the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota.

What makes this star quilt so interesting is that it was decorated like a buffalo robe with the beaded rosettes and the feathers. A similar star-like pattern of radiating diamonds was seen on painted buffalo robes on the Northern Plains known as the “Black War Bonnet” design which only warriors were allowed to use, like in this Bodmer painting.

The Fiske star quilt has blood smeared on the upper center part of the blanket and that really adds some intrigue. Maybe Frank Fiske received this star blanket as a warrior’s gift on his return from serving in WWI or maybe after some dangerous and daring feat. Mr. Fiske lived near or on the Standing Rock Reservation for most of his life and was married to a Sioux woman.

Thousand Pyramids of the Past and Present

Editor's Note: "Getting to Know You" is on display at Quilt House through February 6. To celebrate this show's run, International Quilt Study Center & Museum team members are sharing their impressions on select pieces from the exhibition. 

Thousand Pyramids, maker unknown, possibly made in Pennsylvania,
circa 1890-1910. Jonathan Holstein Collection IQSCM 2003.003.0137.

By Leslie Levy
Executive Director of Quilt House

I love the Thousand Pyramid pattern; I never tire of looking at its quiet and soothing pattern. In fact, I debated a long time whether I would hang a Thousand Pyramid quilt in my office. It is a timeless and classic pattern as evidenced by a trip to QuiltCon in Austin, Texas.

I was absolutely delighted by these pieces and the quilter’s unique twist or interpretation of a classic pattern to make it fresh and modern for today’s audience.

I love the splash of color coupled with the soft greys!

I think this is a sweet, versatile quilt. Its color pallet makes it the perfect addition to a child’s room, a casual living  room or one’s favorite reading spot.

This quilt echoes the Thousand Pyramids pattern but with a fresh, modern twist. The colors are fantastic!

Traditionally, the myriad of fabrics in a Thousand Pyramids quilt give the quilt interest and color as evidenced by the quilt in our exhibition, but at the same time, there is a subtlety to the quilt. Not this one! I love the bold, bright pyramids at the bottom, and the contrasting black and white at the top. This quilt makes me want to have a room done in shades of grey with this bright, bold, beautiful quilt hanging on the wall for all to admire.

January 2016 Quilt of the Month: 'Witch-Hazel Jelena'

With winter settling into the Midwest, we selected Witch-Hazel Jelena by Ruth B. McDowell as the International Quilt Study Center & Museum's January 2016 Quilt of the Month. McDowell’s love of nature plays a significant role in her art quilts. Witch Hazel-Jelena captures the beautiful resilience of this early-blooming shrub against the backdrop of a bleak winter day.

“While normal witch hazel has yellow flowers, Jelenas are coppery colored. Last February mine were just glorious blooming in the snow. I incorporated both the flowers, greatly enlarged, and the branches which have a wonderful shape.”
- Ruth B. McDowell

McDowell holds a degree in art and design from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and spent several years working as an illustrator before beginning her quilting career in 1972. Her first book, “Pattern on Pattern” was published in 1991, and she has since published several additional works.

Witch Hazel-Jelena currently appears in “Getting to Know You,” which is showing at Quilt House through February 6. During its run, some of our visitors have shared their impressions of the quilt. You can view their comments in this video: