A few weeks ago we spent a weekend in the pretty Georgian city of Bath. This is one of my favourite city breaks as Bath has lovely independent shops and places to eat. I bought some books at Persephone Books and we walked around the Royal Victoria Park admiring the Georgian Royal Crescent. Whilst we were in the city we stopped just outside to visit The American Museum & Garden. As well as a great permanent collection they also have good temporary exhibitions, and I really wanted to go and visit the Quilts of Gee’s Bend.
American Museum & Gardens
The American Museum & Gardens is a unique museum of American decorative arts, housed in a gorgeous Georgian country house outside Bath. We’ve been fortunate to visit a few times and the kids have always enjoyed exploring the permanent collections too which include over 250 historic quilts. The garden has been developed since our last visit and the day of our visit was perfect for our visit. Unfortunately dogs are not allowed, which was a shame as our dog usually goes everywhere with us.
Kith & Kin: the Quilts of Gee’s Bend at the American Museum
Kith & Kin: the Quilts of Gee’s Bend opened in February and is on until the 21st June. Housed in the exhibition gallery in the grounds of the house, the exhibition celebrates the work of the African American women from a remote river island community in Alabama, where they have been making quilts for over 200 years.
The women’s quilts are renowned for their bold colours, abstract designs, and improvisational style.
On display were a number of quilts, as well as historic photos of Gees Bend and the process of making the quilts. Although the Gee’s Bend quilts are known for their improvisational nature, I was drawn to the simpler ones, made with just one or two colours.
Like this one by Loretta Pettway Bennett in 2003
This one by Qunnie Pettway in 1982
The choice of colours is really eye catching.
We also liked the re-use of material, such as denim, in some of the quilts.
Altogether an inspirational experience. I would love to make a big quilt like this one day for our home.
