The Work of Their Hands: American Quiltmaking

The anchor work of The Work of Their Hands is a tulip quilt made 170 years ago by an now unknown, enslaved woman in North Carolina. Through her masterful stitchwork and time-honored design, this unknown artist sewed a story of strength and perseverance. Spinning forward from this quilt and its practice, The Work of Their Hands explores the continuing legacy of quilt-making and the evolution of textile art, starting with traditional quilts made for bedcoverings to contemporary fabric artworks by artists including Brittney Boyd Bullock, Celeste Butler, Robin Cowley, Michael Cummings, Gee’s Bend quilters, Michael James, Precious Lovell, Katie Pasquini Masopust, Carolyn Mazloomi, Mary Pal, Hattie Schmidt, Beverly Smith, The Advocacy Project, and others.