Amish quilts are among the most striking and famous of all American quilt types. Renowned for their play of color and strong geometric patterns, their similarities to modern art have been noted ever since the 1971 exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York entitled Abstract Design in American Quilts.
The parallels are perhaps most striking with regard to color field paintings and art that explores the manipulation of visual effect.
Constructed Color: Amish Quilts will be on view from April 4 to August 16, 2009.
This exhibition, on loan from the International Quilt Study Center of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, will feature 30 examples from the center’s highly regarded collection. The quilts represent three specific regional groups, each with its own distinctive features, drawn from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, from Midwestern communities and from Mifflin County, Pennsylvania.
Each of these Amish communities produces unique quilts that reflect the availability of materials, influences from non-Amish neighbors, and the relative conservatism of individual communities as determined by their Ordnung, or community guidelines. The objects which will be on view in the exhibition represent some of the finest Amish quilts in the world.
The picture shows Center Diamond, circa 1920-1940, maker unknown. Probably made in Lancaster County, PA. International Quilt Study Center & Museum, 2003.003.0071. -- www.textilemuseum.org
Comment and add to the story without registration, but keep the comments meaningful please. Links are not accepted.
