History and quilting team up in the national tour of “And Still We Rise: Race, Culture and Visual Conversations,” an unusual exhibition on view now at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich. It tells the story of almost 400 years of African-American history through the medium of story quilts.

 

By Arthur Stampleman

 

History and quilting team up in the national tour of “And Still We Rise: Race, Culture and Visual Conversations,” an unusual exhibition on view now at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich. It tells the story of almost 400 years of African-American history through the medium of story quilts.

 

Story quilting is an art form that expands on traditional textile-arts techniques to record, in fabric, events of personal or historical significance. It goes beyond the simple quilting patterns familiar to many people. Through the accessibility of their colors, patterns, and symbols, the quilts of “And Still We Rise” tell narratives to enable conversations about sensitive topics from our national history, in this instance racial reconciliation in America.

 

There are 67 unique story quilts on display by 40 different artists from the Women of Color Quilters Network. Founded in 1986, the organization’s aims are to preserve the art of quilt-making among women and men of color, to research quilt history, and to offer authentic, handmade African-American quilts and fiber art to museums and galleries for exhibition.

 

Each piece in the exhibit takes on a different period, event, or person from African-American history, including: Colonialism; Phillis Wheatley, the first African- American woman to have her work published (in 1773); Post-Revolutionary War; Emancipation; the Harlem Renaissance; Desegregation; baseball legend Jackie Robinson; Academy Award-winning actor Hattie McDaniel; Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm; Contemporary Life; and the tragedy of Trayvon Martin.

 

“The exhibition gives voice to personal, authentic, and unique histories of African-American men and women – from relating painful stories of enslaved ancestors, to highlighting contemporary political leaders and drawing attention to social challenges our nation continues to face today,” explains guest curator Dr. Carolyn Mazloomi, an accomplished artist, writer, former aerospace engineer who is the founder of the Women of Color Quilters Network.

 

The styles, materials, and techniques vary among the quilts in the exhibit, as can be seen in three examples:

 

240 Million African Slaves Ago (2012) by Valerie Pratt Poitier, Massachusetts

(A surreal image of the millions of slaves coming to the country.)

Materials: cotton fabric, cotton batting, metal, chain, beads

Techniques: machine embroidery, applique, machine quilting

 

Lucy Terry Prince: The Griot’s Voice (2012) by Peggie Hartwell, South Carolina

(Lucy Terry, an enslaved person, becomes the earliest known African-American poet when she writes about the last Native-American attack on her village of Deerfield, Massachusetts)

Materials: cotton fabric, cotton batting, cotton thread, nylon thread

Techniques: hand applique, machine applique, machine embroidery, machine quilting

 

Mammy’s Golden Legacy (2012) by Laura R. Gadson, New York

(Hattie McDaniel was the first African-American actor to be nominated for an Academy Award; she won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 1940 for her performance as Mammy in “Gone With the Wind”.)

Materials: cotton fabric, acrylic paint, buttons, beads, cotton batting

Techniques: applique, embroidery, hand painting, machine quilting

 

The exhibit runs through April 24. The Bruce Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 to 5 and Sunday 1 to 5. Docent tours are held most Tuesdays at 1:30 and most Fridays at 12:30. For information, contact 203-869-0376 or www.brucemuseum.org.