The quilts featured in the new exhibition American Quilts in the Modern Age, 1870-1940 showcase diverse examples of quilters' creations from a time of disenchantment with modern life.

Curator Janet Price chose 14 quilts made by Grace Snyder to be featured in this exhibition. While the quilts must be viewed in person to fully appreciate the artistry and workmanship of the Quilters Hall of Fame inductee Snyder, the images below provide a preview. With the exception "Flower Basket Petit Point," which is loaned by the Nebraska State Historical Society, all quilts in this exhibition are generously loaned by descendants of Grace Snyder.

Inspired by the painted and printed cottons of India, famous for their lively beauty and lasting qualities, the stunning colors and artistry of chintz appliqué quilts made them icons in the nineteenth century. They are considered among the most beautifully crafted, vibrantly colored and largest quilts ever made in America. The 21 quilts, circa 1790-1850, presented in the exhibition organized by Curator of Collections Carolyn Ducey, give a glimpse into their makers' lives and society.

There is a centuries-old tradition in many cultures, particularly in Asia, of wrapping objects with beautiful textiles. In Korean culture, these wrappings, called pojagi, were made in bursts of colorful patchwork or imaginative embroidery, in fine and coarse materials, and from small to large scale. It was in pre-modern Korea, particularly during the Chosŏn dynasty (1392-1910), that the pojagi became a Korean cultural icon. Both courtly and common society during the period were organized according the Confucian creed that elevated men and subjected women to social isolation.

Quilts in Common was one of two inaugural exhibitions in the new galleries of the International Quilt Museum. This exhibit curated by Carolyn Ducey, curator of collections, and Marin F. Hanson, curator of exhibitions, not only showcased many of the Center's masterpiece quilts, but was organized in a novel and thought provoking way: unique commonalities bring together quilts from around the world and across the centuries rather than isolating them in geographical or historical groupings.

The early history of the United States is intimately linked to the United Kingdom by family relationships and through patterns of immigration and trade. In fact, many settlers aspired to replicate British culture in the New World. Women brought their traditional sewing methods along with their needles, pins, thread, and cloth and then taught each new generation. The work of these American and British women surrounds you, and it shows how patchwork traditions have developed and changed over three centuries and across thousands of miles.

Yvonne Wells taught physical education in public schools for most of her adult life. But, in 1979, while her Tuscaloosa, Alabama, home was undergoing major renovations, she had to sit near the fireplace to keep warm. She decided to make her first quilt to warm her legs until the heating system was restored. With knowledge of how her mother, many years before, made utility quilts—the kind that were “made in the morning and used [th]at night”—Wells made her simple pieced quilt.

"I especially thank Ardis for believing in all of us.”
— Susan Shie, studio quilt artist

Ardis Maree Butler (December 5, 1925 - July 7, 2011) was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, and raised in Lincoln and Omaha. She married Robert G. James of Ord, Nebraska, in 1949, and they raised three children: Robert Jr., Catherine, and Ralph. They made their home in Chappaqua, New York.

A person’s name is more than a few letters and sounds that form a recognizable word. Names like Lady Gaga or Michael Jordan or Bill Clinton immediately conjure up enough stories and pictures in the mind to fill many pages. In other words, a name can represent everything we know about a person.

Jean Ray Laury had it all together, so it seems, and she taught other women how to live a balanced life in the roles they chose, making room for everyday creativity. 

This was Laury’s feminist viewpoint, one that appealed to women for whom a radical change in lifestyle was neither practical nor desirable.