War and Pieced is the first exhibition in the United States to showcase the spectacularly complex geometric quilts made exclusively by men using richly dyed wools derived from British military and dress uniforms. Once termed “soldiers’ quilts” or “convalescent quilts,” the pieced textiles are most closely associated with the Crimean War as well as conflicts in India, South Africa, and other troubled regions of the British Empire during the nineteenth century ... The visual virtuosity of the quilts, often incorporating many thousands of pieces no larger than one-inch square, assumes a deeper emotional resonance as we consider them within the matrix of war and its aftermath.
To think of the making a quilt like this as you recovered from an injury ... and what kind of injury would have required such a long recovery. On view at the American Folk Art Museum in NYC.
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From top:
Holy Roman Empire Intarsia Quilt, artist unidentified, Prussia or Austria, 1846–1851, wool, with embroidery thread; intarsia; hand-appliquéd and hand-embroidered, 101-1/2 x 101-1/2″, International Quilt Study Center & Museum, University of Nebraska-Lincoln (2011.068.0001).
Soldier’s Quilt with Incredible Border, artist unidentified, India, c. 1855–1875, wool from military uniforms, with beads; hand-applied beadwork and layered-appliquéd border, 82 x 88″, The Annette Gero Collection. Photo by Tim Connolly, Shoot Studios.
Intarsia Quilt with Soldiers and Musicians, artist unidentified; initialed “J.S.J.,” Prussia, c. 1760–1780, wool, with embroidery thread; intarsia; hand-appliquéd and hand-embroidered, 55 x 43″, The Annette Gero Collection. Photo by Tim Connolly, Shoot Studios.
