Quilts at the Art Institute of Chicago

 

 

The exhibit this past winter-spring in the textile galleries at the Art Institute of Chicago was spectacular.  So spectacular that I went twice!  Going once was just not enough time to soak up the beauty and history of the pieces from their great collection.  I craved another chance to breathe the rarefied air of these wonderful quilts!

And here they are, in no particular order, so all of you who don't live near Chicago get to enjoy them, too.  (I missed a couple of them, due to "too much" chatting, but this is most of them.)

The title of the show was "Making Memories: Quilts as Souvenirs", and included quilts that commemorate people, places, and events.  You can view the entire Art Institute collection on their website.

 

I took the curator's tour on my first visit to the show.  She pointed out the couple stealing a kiss that is just visible behind the left side of the cabin.

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Note the amazing double scalloped borders! 

 

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Note the thematic and intricate quilting.

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The curator told us that the inspiration for this quilt was a radio broadcaster who had joked that he wanted to cut off his dog's tail because he was tired of seeing the dog be so happy when his mother-in-law came to visit.  Not surprisingly, this offended quite a lot of women and animal lovers.  The little sign at the lower right says: "The home that tenderly greets the mother-in-law"

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This amazing piece is all hand painted!

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I love the use of printed fabrics for the stained glass windows.

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Bertha Stenge's signature is the address on the Valentine envelope!

 

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And here is another Bertha Stenge mistresspiece, probably my favorite quilt ever.  Yes, each mini-quilt and each mini-block around the border is actually pieced.  She utilized fussy cut prints to make the teensy quilts look even more realistic.  And then there's the wonderful quilting and trapunto.  I could've just camped out in front of this quilt for the duration of the show!

 

 

 

 

Here's how Bertha Stenge signed and dated this mistresspiece.

 

 

 And finally, here I am, fangirling with the best quilt ever.