During 2018 in the salt lake modern quilt group, i designed a gees bend inspired quilt along. The feedback effects have mesmerized and inspired generations of gees bend quiltmakers. Because im a beginner i had never quilted before this class i would like to have some sort of pattern to. We wish to thank debby kratovil for her expertise in adapting the original version of these quilt for use in our kits. The gees bend quilt story starts in africa, where a musical style of polyrhythms was invented.
The quilts of gees bend in context project at auburn university explores the history of gees bend, alabama, and tries to show it in the context of the lives, traditions, and histories of its residents and the gees bend quilt tradition. Our furniture, home decor and accessories collections feature quilts gees bend in quality materials and classic styles. I just discovered an awesome web site with some great background and bio info on these amazing quilters from gees bend. An often mentioned design triumph of the gees bend aesthetic has been its quiltmakers magnification of small pattern blocks to monumental scales, so that the single element becomes the entire composition. Gees bend quilt an example of a syncopated rhythm in art through the use of repetition and variation one of the most moving quilt exhibits i have ever seen. Ive shared my adaptations of 8 of the quilts here before. Image from fiber arts explore over 100 quilts at 23 location. Gray center invites you to join us for a quilting retreat with china pettway and mary ann pettway of the gee s bend quilting collective. Corners of my mind detail corners of my mind detail by catherine beard. I finished by gees bend inspired wonky quilt sewcanshe.
Boykin, also known as gees bend, is an african american majority community and censusdesignated place in a large bend of the alabama river in wilcox county, alabama. The first is the medallion variation by louisiana p. These forms, like the workclothes quilt genre, offer metaphors for existence in the bend, where art discovered ways to sprout from the ordinariness of daily life. This past year or so has been a little bit of a journey of sorts through exploring gees bend quilts. Joyce brenton i tried to duplicate the gees bend quilt of mary spencer because it really looked like something she made from pieces of clothing with no real pattern. The quilts of gees bend exhibition was later followed by a second major exhibition, gees bend. I like the colors and the illusion of depth in this quilt. Theres a new exhibition of works by the quilters of gees bend, alabama, whose. Set in the quiltmakers homes and yard, and told through the womens voices, this musicfilled, 28minute documentary takes viewers inside the art and fascinating living. Gray center invites you to join us for a quilting retreat with china pettway and mary ann pettway of the gees bend quilting collective. It is kept pretty simple because it is meant for children, but the tragedy and suffering of these ladies and their families is not whitewashed. The architecture of the quilt is a major book and museum exhibition that will premiere at the museum of fine arts, houston mfah, in june 2006 before traveling to seven american museums through 2008.
Lets have a quilt show today featuring gees bend quilts and gees bendstyle quilts. The books 330 color illustrations and insightful text bring home the exciting experience to readers while displaying all the. The history of gees bend, alabama auburn university. Maine fiberarts gees bend quilts at maine fiberarts. China and mary ann will share their unique quilting styles as participants explore the work of their hands and the spirituality of quilting. The community of gees bend whose official name is boykin is situated in wilcox county in west alabama in the bend of the alabama river. The architecture of the quilt september 16december 14, 2008 and to serve as an ongoing resource for teachers. For example, think about solomon lindas famous song the lion sleeps tonight. I sewed strips together, sewed those chunks together, and then sewed strips all. The gees bend ferry terminal is located at 12021 co rd 29, boykin al 36723. Pattern blocksquilt patternslog cabin quiltslog cabinsgees bend quiltsafrican. Use the navigation bar on the left to find information on my teaching schedule, the latest workshops, and free patterns. I used a ruler and rotary cutter to help me cut straignt, but i didnt measure anything.
The postal servicetm will issue 39cent quilts of gees bend commemorative stamps in 10 designs in a pressure sensitive adhesive psa doublesided booklet of 20 stamps item 674500 on august. Gees bend quilt kits and fabrics quilt block patterns, quilt blocks, quilting. The whole idea was to allow everyone the freedom of sewing blocks, with a little bit of structure and consistency. The base sings continuous whole notes, visualized here as horizontal lines. Since the 19th century, the women of gee s bend in southern alabama have created stunning, vibrant quilts.
Feb 19, 20 gees bend in blues quilt at anacraftsbcn. Here is her original quilt as seen on the page with her bio. Easy disappearing 9patch quilt pattern how to paper piece a quilt how to make quilt sashing with cornerstones how to make a rag quilt facts about fabric grain that every quilter should know. I learned that these quilters started by painstakingly taking apart old clothes by hand so as to use the entire piece of fabric. The fantastic thing about this site is that there are a lot of quilt pictures and quilts attributed to the various quilters. When im doing my quilt, my mind is totally into it, and i dont have to be perfect. Gees bend quilt kits we love quilting and everything else. Gees bend quilts lawsuits resolved the seattle times. Here are the last two of the gees bend quilts that i patterned. Gees bend quilts carry forward an old and proud tradition of textiles made for home. Windham fabrics shares a portion of the proceeds from the sale of our gees bend kits and gees bend solids with the gees bend quilters collective. Helping quilters finish quilt tops, one quilt block at a time. No matter what youre looking for or where you are in the world, our global marketplace of sellers can help you find unique and affordable options. The quilts of gees bend are quilts created by a group of women and their ancestors who live or have lived in the isolated africanamerican hamlet of gees bend, alabama along the alabama river.
Ive found plenty of information about it, but i cant find any patterns to follow. Photo by patch ala foliewierd but interesting pattern, i will take it over same old boring. Clever little things to sew free bag patterns holiday sewing tutorials free quilt. You can now buy the individual patterns for all 8 gee s bend quilts. Windham fabrics the quilts of gees bend on display at qt in november 2009. This is a gorgeous and inspiring look at the quilts of gees bend, their history, and the people who made them. Conceived broadly, the housetop is an attitude, an approach toward form and construction. The quilts of gees bend are considered to be unique, and one of the most important africanamerican visual and cultural contributions to the history of art within the united states. In 2003, with assistance from the arnetts, the living quilters of gees bend founded the gees bend quilters collective to. This resource guide was developed by the division of education of the philadelphia museum of art to complement the exhibition gees bend. If you want to go behind the scenes on this, heres an interview with maris curran, the filmmaker. The fundamental geometries of gees bend quilts shine in works made with single repeating patches.
Statement written by artist katharine cobey, cushing, maine, 2014 my favorite vignette from the books on gees bend is a description of a woman walking home from a long day in the cotton fields. You can learn more about the gees bend quilt story in this article and see many quilts here. In the early 1990s, a former bend resident living in bridgeport, connecticut, sent some garments doubleknit leisure suits. A bonus full color sheet is included in each pattern with biographical information on the gees bend quilters and the individual quilter who inspired the adapted quilt pattern with a picture of the original quilt.
Note that her quilt is surrounded with a lot of white fabric. I love my wonky quilt that was inspired by the gorgeous iconic quilts made in gees bend, alabama. The women of gees bend, a small remote black community in alabama, have created hundreds of quilt masterpieces dating from the early 20th century to the present. Gees bend quilts these quilts are on display somewhere. Its possibly the most successful example of a tumbling block quilt ive ever seen. The history of gees bend, alabama draft article by kyes stephens alabama online encyclopedia. Gees bend quilt exhibited at sainte marie aux mines 2009 france. Mary lee bendolph, strips and strings, cotton and cotton blends, 74 x 49 inches. Six of youngs quilts, together with 64 by other gees bend residents, have been traveling around the united states in an exhibition that has transformed the way many people think about art. During 2018 in the salt lake modern quilt group, i designed a gees bend inspired quilt along the whole idea was to allow everyone the freedom of sewing blocks, with a little bit of structure and consistency. Learn how to quilt like a pro with our expert tips and advice to take your quilting skills to the next level. You may know the story of how their work went from unknown to.
The women of gees bend have developed a distinctive, bold, and sophisticated quilting style based on traditional american and. The architecture of the quilt, which debuted in 2006 and is currently traveling to museums throughout the united states. See more ideas about gees bend quilts, quilts, african american quilts. The boykin post office was established in the community in 1949 and remains active, servicing the 36723 zip code gees bend was named for joseph gee, an early large land. A bonus full color sheet is included in each pattern with biographical information on the gees bend quilters and the individual quilter who inspired the adapted. The quilters of gees bend, recipients of the 2015 nea national heritage award. The quilts of gees bend gee s bend was named after joseph gee, the first white man to stake a claim there in the early the gee family sold the plantation to mark pettway in most of the. The women of gees bend, in a small and remote black community in alabama, have created hundreds of quilt masterpieces dating back to the early twentieth century. The quilts of gees bend four generations of africanamerican quilters in gees bend, ala. The quilts of gees bend documentary accompanies the major exhibitions of gees bend quilts. Directly across the river from camden, and southeast of selma, gees bend has one road into the community. I received these 4 kits in yesterday after being backordered for a while. Etsy is the home to thousands of handmade, vintage, and oneofakind products and gifts related to your search. There are quilters and then there are the amazing women who sew quilts in gees bend, alabama.
Postal service even issued ten commemorative stamps featuring images of gees bend quilts. Quilts of gees bend live and in person at the elizabeth leach gallery. Beautifully illustrated with 110 color illustrations, the quilts of gee s bend includes a historical overview of the two hundred years of extraordinary quiltmaking in this africanamerican community, its people, and their artmaking tradition. We celebrate the creativity of these women with these quilts. In a lot of quilting traditions, the goal is to follow the pattern, to make a quilt exactly like everyone elses, to show how well you can duplicate the pattern. These patterns and piecing styles were passed down over. Gees bend quilt by missouri history museum, via flickr see more. The quilts of gees bend kits and solids, windham fabrics.