Following the popular and successful exhibitions of stunningly original quilts designed by the women of Gee's Bend, Alabama, the Denver Art Museum (DAM) will host its sequel, Gee's Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt, April 13 through July 6, 2008. The critically acclaimed show features 49 unique quilts created from the 1920s through 2005 by four generations of women from this small, isolated farming community.
Transforming an essential necessity into an art form, these quilts express their stories of family, community and basic human survival. The quilts are widely acclaimed as spectacular examples of modern, abstract art and their makers as brilliantly creative self-taught artists.
On view at the DAM April 13 through July 6, 2008, Gee's Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt is the second exhibition organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and the Tinwood Alliance. Premiering at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, in July 2006, the tour continues to well-known museums in eight U.S. cities. Curated for the DAM by Alice Zrebiec, the Museum's consulting curator of textile art, this new exhibition takes an in-depth look at the quilts and their makers, expanding upon concepts presented in the inaugural show, The Quilts of Gee's Bend.
Gee's Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt examines the origins of patterns and materials and how the familial and community interrelationships among the quilters influence their work. Originally created for basic comfort and need, the quilts were hung on loose-board walls to keep the wind out and layered under thin mattresses. With limited resources, the women of Gee's Bend recycled old clothing and fabric to piece together quilts in their own patterns like Housetop and Bricklayer. Boldly combining color, fabric, form and texture, these quilt makers turned utilitarian objects into contemporary artworks. Much more than a sequel to the successful first exhibition, Gee's Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt examines the structure of the Gee's Bend quilts from a number of perspectives: the role of materials and recycling; the role of family relationships and friendships; the inventive "bending" of standard quilt patterns and the development of individual styles amid a strong community tradition.
The exhibition also reveals the remarkable rebirth of quilting that has occurred in Gee's Bend in the last four years: Older women who had ceased quilting are creating anew, and younger generations also have embraced the art. A number of the quilts selected for this show have been made since the earlier exhibition – evidence that the Gee's Bend quilting tradition, once thought to be fading, is alive and thriving.
Gee's Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt is curated for the DAM by Alice Zrebiec, consulting curator of textile art. This exhibition is organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and Tinwood Alliance, Atlanta. Additional local funding is provided by American Family Insurance, the citizens who support the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District and the generous donors to the Annual Leadership Campaign. Promotional support is provided by The Denver Post. An illustrated exhibition catalog with essay contributions from specialists and artists accompanies this exhibition and delves deeper into the themes of the show. The hard cover edition will be available in the Museum store for $50. -- www.denverartmuseum.org
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