“Masters: 40 Contemporary Art Quilters” at the New England Quilt Museum

Just a half-hour north and snug in the center of Lowell, the New England Quilt Museum is playing host to a stunning collection of 40 contemporary quilts made by master artists from all over the world. "Masters" is a wide-ranging anthology of technique and represents the cutting edge of art quilting, which Harvard resident, quilter, and NEQM docent coordinator Nancy Reifenstein recently interpreted for some members of the Harvard Woman’s Club. The collection is almost completely nontraditional, she pointed out, and features work from the world’s most accomplished artists in the quilt medium. While most people think of art as painting and sculpture, she said, here the canvas is fabric and the paint brush is a needle.

The modern art quilt is a relatively recent phenomenon, Reifenstein explained. In 1971 an American art collector named Jonathan Holstein organized a group of quilts for an exhibition titled “Abstract Design in American Quilts” for the Whitney Museum of American Art. By putting quilts on the walls of a prestigious art museum and comparing their graphic qualities to those found in modern art, the quilts were elevated from craft to art almost overnight. The prestige—and explosion of learning and technique—that followed has given rise to an impressive number of art quilters all over the globe.

World of Tuaregs by Hollis Chatelain. (Courtesy photo)

A handful of descriptions from the Masters exhibit might entice the reader to make the trip, which I encourage for anyone who loves art in any medium. The collection includes a number of works by men, and while more traditional quilts often have a feminine feeling, this collection has a broad range of subject matter and technique that makes it attractive for everyone.

The first quilt in the exhibit is a visual romp. Made by New Mexico artist Terrie Hancock Mangat, the Hancock Memorial Quilt portrays the Virgin of Guadalupe framed by two crosses. Embroidered, painted, appliquéd and quilted, it invites the viewer in—and in and in. Metal thread, sparkling beads and gems traverse the image, with new wit appearing every few inches—charms, buttons, a decoupaged or hand-embroidered image. This striking quilt measures a statuesque nine by seven feet, making the opportunity for discovery almost infinite.

Metamorphosis by Jane Sassaman. (Courtesy photo)

Jane Sassaman, long acknowledged as one of America’s master quilters, contributed a quilt called Metamorphosis. Sassaman’s quilts most often feature a botanical theme, and this depiction of jimsonweed is simple, but graphically powerful, with the spiky and unattractive seed pod blossoming into a bright, colorful flower. According to show notes, Sassaman created the quilt as a metaphor for human life, discovery, and the development of innate potential. Reifenstein also pointed out that Sassaman’s sewing skills are exceptional, and a close viewing reveals finely turned edges and meticulously detailed work in the vibrant quilt.

World of Tuaregs, also called “Blue Men,” is a striking whole-cloth work by Hollis Chatelain that depicts the nomadic Tuaregs of the Sahara desert. Indigo traders and dyers, the Tuaregs’ skin absorbs the pigment and renders it an unearthly blue. Painted with only blue dye and thoroughly quilted all over with colored thread, this quilt is as vivid as a portrait. Standing in front of this work, the sand and desert heat are almost palpable.

Israeli Ita Ziv created the contemporary quilt collage Fata Morgana, an abstract interpretation of a distant mirage. The multi-colored blocks, embroidered with gold thread and overlaid with nylon organza, appear to shimmer against the vivid orange background. Ziv has a special interest in treating and manipulating fabric, creating new surfaces and textures by a constant process of discovery, notes the companion book for the collection. “You are the artist,” she says. “You have to design your experience with your own hands.”

This small representation of the Masters exhibit is just the gateway to a wide variety of visual experience at the museum. The NEQM presents four to five exhibitions of antique, traditional and contemporary quilts every year, as well as workshops, lectures and group tours. Founded in 1987 by the New England Quilters Guild, the museum is dedicated to preserving the region’s rich history of quilting, as well as educating others about the art and craft of quiltmaking. Founders of the museum also created the popular citywide Lowell Quilt Festival, held each year in mid-August. For more information on upcoming exhibits and other programs hosted by the NEQM, visit www.nequiltmuseum.org.