“Gee’s Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt†opening Sept. 22 at Tacoma Art Museum may prove to be the most exciting show this museum has ever had. The show features 51 quilts from the famous Gee’s Bend quilters â€" all women, all descended from a single slave, and all residents of Gee’s Bend, Ala., a tiny town almost completely isolated from the rest of the state by its location in the bend of the Alabama River.
Special events in connection with “Gee’s Bend: The Architecture of the Quiltâ€:
“If These Quilts Could Talk: A Community Conversation†â€" Visitors are invited to bring in their heirloom quilts and share their stories, Sept. 23, 2 p.m.
Members’ Opening Celebration â€" Four of the Gee’s Bend quilters will be special guests in the galleries. Two quilters will be available to sign exhibition catalogues exclusively for members, Sept. 29, 6 p.m., free for members and $10 for non-members.
Panel discussion with four of the quilters from Gee’s Bend: Mary Lee Bendolph, Louisiana Bendolph, Loretta Bennett, and Nettie Young, Sept. 30, 2 p.m., $5 for members and $15 for non-members.
Read the full story in the Weekly Volcano's Fall Arts preview on the streets tomorrow. â€" Alec Clayton
Pictured: Blocks, strips, strings and half squares, 2005, by Mary Lee Bendolph. Courtesy of Stephen Pitkin/Pitkin Studio, Rockford, Ill