I remember whenmy sister, the quilter in the family, first showed me pictures ofseveral quilts from Gee’s Bendat some point in the mid-2000s. They were strikingly beautiful, and unlike anything I’d seen before.Lots of other people thought so, too, when they were first exhibited at theWhitney Museum of American Artin 2002.
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| Many people were astounded and delighted when they got their first looks at thenow-famous Gee’s Bend quilts. In 2006 they werefeatured on United States postage stamps. |
Like many people, I was fascinated by thedynamic asymmetry of these designs, such a different approach to the formal balance found in most traditional quilt patterns.
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| If you’ve grown up with quilts as I have, the first thing that leaps to mind when someone says “patchwork quilt” is theformal balance of traditional patternssuch as theSix-Pointed Star Medallion Quilt(2017) fromCatbird Quiltsat left, or theHoedowngrid quilt byCodysnana, fromThe Spruce Craftsat right. |
We artists and art loversseek and create bridges to meaning by linking what we know to things we have not previously seen. Thus, I understand the comparisons to the work ofColor Fieldartists such asBarnett Newman,or artists associated withGeometric Abstraction, such asFrank StellaorJosef Albers,byart critics commenting on the earliest shows. They had few other points of reference in their universe (not being conversant withWest African textiles, apparently).
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| They could’ve Googled it: this screen grab shows the results of aGoogle Image Search for “West African Textiles.” |
Of course, an argumentcan be andhas been made that, particularly in thewhite-male-dominated world of the New York art scene in the early “uh-ohs”(well pre-#MeToo) there were more than a few people flabbergasted thatimpoverished, isolated black womencould actuallycome up with such stunning and masterful designs, all by themselves.
Well, suck it up, guys.White men didn’t invent ALL the good things after all. (Truth be told, there are those who will point out thatthey actually didn’t even invent as many of those good things as they claim. . . but that’s a whole ‘nother blog post).
Bottom line:the women of Gee’s Bend are the real deal, even if they didn’t go to art school or study “the masters.” But it’s also true thatthey didn’t get into the Whitney, and thereby onto the world stage, all by themselves.
They got therethrough the efforts of a white man from Atlanta, namedWilliam “Bill” Arnett, and as with all help from white men,the longer one looks at his work and treatment of theoutsider artistshe discovered, the more questions arise.There are those who intimate or outright claim exploitation. Certainly, the licensing of those images for postage stamps didn’t filter back to Gee’s Bend,for one example among many.
Bill Arnett, of course, has his own version of events. And you certainly can’t say he didn’t have a nose for talent. Not only did hediscover and share the Gee’s Bend quilts with the world, but lightning struck at least twice.He’s also the man who discoveredThornton Dialand mentored him into world-class artist scene.Arnett continues to champion the cause of African art, with hisSouls Grown Deep Foundation.
No matter who paid for what, licensed what, or what settlements were reached in the aftermath, one thing we must say is that, whatever their influences,the quilters of Gee’s Bend have become influential in their own right. They only came to the attention of the world in 2002, sowe still don’t even yet know how or what or where their influence will go, but already they’ve becomeestablished deep in the aesthetic consciousness of contemporary African American art. Younger African American artists knowGee’s Bend is a place where their roots run deep.
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| Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama,2018,the official portrait of the former First Lady, byAmy Sherald. |
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| At left, the “Runway version” ofthe Milly dress by Michelle Smith; at right, a variety of Gee’s Bend quilt designs. |
For one example, a youngerAmy Sherald,whose work I profiled last spring, and who was recentlychosen to create the official portrait of Michelle Obama for the National Portrait Gallery, attended that 2002 Whitney show.Sherald says part of the reasonshe choseto usethe Michelle Smith-designed Milly dressfor the portrait wasthe way it reminded her of the Gee’s Bend quilts.
I predict thatthe echoes of influence aren’t finished reverberatingthrough generations (and artworks) to come.
IMAGES: Many thanks toThe Textile Research Centre of Leiden, for the montage of Gee’s Bend quilt postage stamp designs; toCatbird Quilts, viaPinterest, for the gorgeousSix-Pointed Star Medallion Quilt,and toThe Spruce Craftsby Codysnana,viaPinterest, for the photo of the very strikingHoedownpattern grid quilt. The screen grab of West African Textile Patterns is from aGoogle Image Search. I want to thanktheNew York Timesfor the almost-15-minute video “While I Yet Live,” which includes comments from the quilters about their history, and lots of images of their wonderful quilts. Finally, I am indebted toDecor Arts Now, for the photo of the Michelle Obama portrait, the Milly dress, and several suggestive quiltpatterns. I also want to thankDecor Artsfor the photos of the Michelle Obama portrait, as well as the photos regarding the “influence elements” ofthe Milly dressand a collection of representative Gee’s Bend quilt designs.
