The whitework piece,which Remington crafted in 1815, remains the only known example of an Americanquilt designed with a coat of arms honoring the family’s heritage. This superbquilt as well as the couple’s correspondence impart heartfelt context to theMilwaukee Art Museum’s upcoming exhibition “American Quilts: Selections fromthe Winterthur Collection.”
Forty selections frommore than 300 quilts collected by Delaware’s Winterthur Museum travel toMilwaukee for the exhibit’s May 22 opening. The quilts demonstrate howdecorative arts can provide insight into the cultures and events of theirtimesin this case, the early years of the United States. The exhibit runsthrough Sept. 6.
Among decorative arts,historical textiles remain one of the most difficult forms to display,especially the fragile quilts. Susceptible to deterioration and discolorationfrom handling and light, each quilt can be exhibited for only a short period oftime. An exhibit featuring 40 quilts from the prestigious Winterthur collectionpresents a rare opportunity to appreciate handiwork documenting individualAmerican stories.
Signsof the Times
The exhibition’s quiltsexemplify the subjects that Remington wrote about in her letters, including thetechniques she used in the quilts, from appliqué and crewel to piecing andstuffed work. All these delicate stitches, accomplished by the glow ofcandlelight, attest to the duties undertaken by 18th- and 19th-century women.
Some fashionablequiltsincluding Remington’s whitework, with its crest perfectly sewn in themiddle of an oval medallioneven integrated patterns resembling the period’sprominent architecture and art. The patterns often reference Scottish architectRobert Adam, whose elegant neoclassicism defined our growing nation fordecades.
Quilts also highlightAmerica’s burgeoning textile industry. Luxurious silk and velvet suddenlyreplaced the bright-colored cotton and floral chintz once imported fromEngland. Cotton became more affordable, and less desirable, when it was “Madein America.” So exotic fabrics, especially those printed in India, Flanders,France and Persia, became preferable to the homespun cotton used in theseshowpiece quilts.
One quilt from 1805,discovered in rural Maine, contains expensive dress silks from around theglobe. How did this isolated seamstress access this splendor? Her father, a NewEngland ship captain, brought them home from his extensive world travels. Eventhe backcountry was linked to the global economy.
The earliest quilt inthe exhibition dates from the late-1600s, but most examples range from 1760 to1850. These politically turbulent times find a voice in several of theexhibited quilts, one displaying pride in our struggling democracy byincorporating the Great Seal of the United States.
Many of the quiltsrecall times spent celebrating births, commemorating deaths or acknowledgingmarriages and other special events. Each quilt tells a story that can beenjoyed by observers of any age.
“American Quilts” weavesart with history, person and place, as seen through women’s eyes. As CatherineSawinski, MAM’s assistant curator of earlier European art, says of the exhibit,it “demonstrates what women actually knew and felt, as opposed to whateveryone’s preconceived notions were.”
Contemporary quiltershave pushed the art form into abstract realms by using modern technologies suchas digital sewing and photographic transfer. However, the inspiration andintent of the colonial traditions presented in this exhibit continue on, withstitchings that create memories to be passed along to future generations.
The exhibition’scurator, the Winterthur Museum’s Linda Eaton, will offer two gallery lectures(May 20 at 6:15 p.m. and May 21 at 1:30 p.m.). For more information on“American Quilts,” call (414) 224-3200 or visit www.mam.org.
