Gee’s Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt
Speed Art Museum
January 2, 2008 – March 23, 2008
This exhibition features the brilliant, bold quilts created in the twentieth century by a group of women who live in the small, isolated African-American community of Gee's Bend in southwestern Alabama.
The 70 quilts in the exhibition, created by 42 women spanning four generations, provide a fascinating look at the work of 20th-century artists who lived and worked in solitude. Gee's Bend is located on a sliver of land five miles long and eight miles wide, a virtual island surrounded by a bend in the Alabama River. Isolated geographically, the women in the community created quilts from whatever materials were available, in patterns of their own imaginative design.
The dynamic, abstract quilts' innovative patterns and brilliant use of line and color demonstrate a highly developed talent for structure and design. Unlike abstract painters, however, the Gee's Bend women created their quilts out of necessity and practical considerations rather than a conscious attempt to make art.
Their focus on everyday concerns, such as salvaging discarded fabric, recycling old clothing, and finding ways to keep their families warm and comfortable, makes the extraordinary aesthetic appeal of their quilts even more remarkable.
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