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Object Story: African American Quilting

Print on paper showing arrangement of squares; within each square there are strips of colored rectangles that are arranged asymmetrically in shades of red, blue, white, and black.
Print on paper of a fabric quilt with an arrangement of rectangles and triangles that creates a ladder-like arrangement at the center; rectangles and wedges of different colors, predominantly in orange, yellow, white, eggplant purple, grey, and teal.
Print on paper showing long vertical strips of color predominantly in shades of blue and cream.
Print on paper showing a green square border around a maroon square border, surrounding irregular arrangements of multicolor rectangles.
Print on paper showing a red rectangular border around a cream and navy rectangular border surrounding an abstract arrangement of red block shapes.
Print on paper showing arrangement of squares; within each square there are strips of colored rectangles that are arranged asymmetrically in shades of red, blue, white, and black.
Print on paper of a fabric quilt with an arrangement of rectangles and triangles that creates a ladder-like arrangement at the center; rectangles and wedges of different colors, predominantly in orange, yellow, white, eggplant purple, grey, and teal.
Print on paper showing long vertical strips of color predominantly in shades of blue and cream.
Print on paper showing a green square border around a maroon square border, surrounding irregular arrangements of multicolor rectangles.
Print on paper showing a red rectangular border around a cream and navy rectangular border surrounding an abstract arrangement of red block shapes.

Loretta Pettway (American, born 1942), Remember Me, 2007, color softground and hardground etching with aquatint. Purchased with funds from the Art Collectors’ Council and Virginia Steel Scott Foundation Acquisition Fund, 2019.8.31

Loretta Pettway (American, born 1942), Old Beauty, 2007, color softground and hardground etching with aquatint. Purchased with funds from the Art Collectors’ Council and the Virginia Steel Scott Foundation Acquisition Fund for American Art, 2019.8.32

Loretta Pettway (American, born 1942), Lazy Gal, 2007, color softground and hardground etching with aquatint. Purchased with funds from the Art Collectors’ Council and the Virginia Steel Scott Foundation Acquisition Fund for American Art, 2019.8.30

Louisiana Bendolph (American, born 1960), Going Home, 2005, color softground etching with aquatint. Purchased with funds from the Art Collectors’ Council and the Virginia Steel Scott Foundation Acquisition Fund for American Art, 2019.8.3

Louisiana Bendolph (American, born 1960), American Housetop for the Arnetts, 2005, color softground etching with aquatint. Purchased with funds from the Art Collectors’ Council and the Virginia Steel Scott Foundation Acquisition Fund for American Art, 201

These images are actually of prints made from small quilts by renowned Gee’s Bend quilters Loretta Pettway and Louisiana Bendolph. Their style and design are unique and reflect a tradition of African American quilting that was not widely known until recently.

In the early 2000s, forty women from Gee’s Bend, Alabama, showcased their quilts in a museum. Their work was unique and original and very much unlike other quilts people had seen before, in part because of their geographical location.

The women of Gee’s Bend often work together, frequently work without patterns, and often recycle old clothing and other fabrics. They call this the “my way” approach to quilting and personalize the patterns. All of the Gee’s Bend quilters believe their work is to honor members of their community and to celebrate those who came before them.

These prints were made from miniature sewn quilts that were pressed onto a wax-coated plate. The soft wax helped capture the texture of the fabric, the seams, and wear and tear on the fabrics. From the wax plates, the artists printed multiple copies of their quilt on paper.

From Quilts to Prints

Artists in Gee’s Bend would often display their quilts indoors within their communities. While the quilts were already part of a vibrant arts display culture, they were not known within art museums or galleries until the early 2000s. Paulson Fontaine Press, a fine art printing press in Berkeley, California, worked with the artists of Gee’s Bend to print their quilts on paper. These limited edition prints of Gee’s Bend quilts can now be seen in museums and galleries around the world. 

Watch this video of Gee’s Bend Quilters Mary Lee Bendolph and Louisiana Bendolph making prints in the Paulson Fontaine Press Studio.

Questions for Discussion