WELCOME!
We are "Sisters In Stitches Joined by the Cloth",
New England's only African American Quilting Guild
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What are African American Quilts?
The textile traditions of African peoples are less thoroughly documented than other aspects of folk art such as music, dance, or speech. However what is known can be traced back to the prominent influences of four civilizations of Central and West Africa: the Mande-speaking peoples (in the modern countries of Guinea, Mali, Senegal, and Burkino Faso); the Yoruba and Fon peoples (in the Republic of Benin and Nigeria); the Ejagham peoples (in Nigeria and Cameroons); and the Kongo peoples (in Zaire and Angola).As slaves, and also their textiles, were traded heavily throughout the
Caribbean, Central America, and the Southern United States, the traditions of
each distinct region became intermixed. Thus by the time that early African
American quilting became a tradition in and of itself, it was already a
combination of textile traditions. The segments that follow are an overview of
the general themes and patterns of quilting that have been influenced by African
aesthetic, religious, and cultural traditions. See more.
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"Sisters In Stitches", The Boston Globe, The Quilts of Gee's Bend, and The Museum of Fine Arts
These "sisters" do more than just quilt! As seen by their recent feature in the Boston Globe, these women are also very interested in community awareness. In the "Life and Arts" section on July, 14, 2005, Linda Matchan of the Globe Staff interviewed several of the members of the only African American quilting quild in New England-Sisters in Stitches Joined by the Cloth. For more information, see the boston globe featured article. |
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Featured Article: From the African Loom to the American Quilt
by Gladys-Marie Fry
In Spring 1998, the National Humanities Center's white walls were transformed by a colorful collection of African-American quilts on loan from the Robert Cargo Folk Art Gallery in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. This show was inspired by Gladys-Marie Fry, 1997-98 Fellow and Professor of English and Folklore at the University of Maryland. Author of Stitched from the Soul: Slave Quilting in the Ante-Bellum South (1990), she has curated twelve such exhibitions, one of which is currently on view at the Smithsonian Institution. Here she comments on several of the pieces the Center displayed. (Photos: Kent Mullikin)
Famous Bible Quilt By Harriet Powers(1837-1911), Owned by the Smithsonian Museum.
Learn more about the history of Africans Quilting in America, includes a timeline and featured books, along with information about the quilts of Gee's Bend.
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