Three exhibits at the Texas Quilt Museum showcase the diversity and history of the art form and are sure to prove popular. They are Christmas in Texas, American Quilt Study Group Presents: Quiltmakers and Designers 1945-1979, and Tobacco Silks Reimagined. They will be on display through December 19.
In Gallery I, Christmas in Texas (sponsored by Quilts, Inc.) presents 23 quilts with a holiday color theme of red and green from the extensive International Quilt Festival Collection.
Many of these handmade works from the 1850s-1920s were featured in the 2016 book and previous exhibit Christmas Quilts, Christmas Memories. The collection is of special importance to Texas Quilt Museum co-founders Karey Bresenhan and Nancy O’Bryant Puentes.
“Our mothers made Christmas magic. That's what we remember most. Like most women of their day, they were the tradition keepers, the artful wrappers, the perfect present buyers, and Christmas card senders. . .not to mention holiday chefs!” the pair recall. “We often think of all the work, and all the love, that went into the holidays for our mothers, and marvel at what they did to make Christmas the most magical time of the year, creating so many special memories for us and our entire family.”
Museum Curator Vicki Mangum adds “The Collection holds a myriad of quilts often used to celebrate Christmas here in Texas. The selection on display here has several of my favorites. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!”
Gallery II will showcase 25 pieces in American Quilt Study Group Presents: Quiltmakers and Designers 1945-1979 (partially sponsored by Reynolds & Associates, PLLC).
Every other year, AQSG selects a specific design, style, or time period as the study theme. Participants are challenged to select an existing quilt that fits the quilt study guidelines and creates a smaller replica, interpreting the elements of the original quilt in a new and fresh way. The replica quilts are displayed here.
“I remember well the quilts my grandmother Coody and family made during this time frame,” Mangum says. “The AQSG is famous for their studies, their accuracy, and connection in our lives. This exhibit is exceptional. I believe most current quilters will enjoy revisiting this era of quilting.”
Finally, Gallery III will feature Tobacco Silks Reimagined (sponsored by Frank Klein & the Lucille Gaebler Klein Fund). These 33 pieces by Greta Mikkelsen stem from her fascination with the silks, themselves unique relics from the turn of the 20th century when tobacco companies began earnestly marketing their products to entice new users and create brand loyalty amongst customers.
Collectible silk inserts were printed using state-of-the-art chromolithography, which reproduced the illustrations and photographs in fine detail and vivid color, but became too expensive even for premium brands, and all but ended by the mid-1920s.
Mikkelsen became fascinated when a friend found an old, rag-tag swatch of mismatched silks fashioned into a pillow top at an antique store.
She was captivated by the dichotomy between the preciousness of the inserts and the insidiousness of the marketing and manufacture of the tobacco products they represented. But her artistic interest lay more in expressing the physical qualities of the silks, their historical significance, and their collectible appeal.
Mangum was fascinated as well. “Tobacco Silk Quilts have intrigued me since I first heard the term. While I had older relatives who smoked, I’d never heard of tobacco coming in silk bags or pouches!” she sums up.
Regular museum hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. There will be extended hours during the International Quilt Festival, held in Houston, from Monday, November 9 through Sunday, November 15. Those hours will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and noon to 4 p.m. on that Sunday.
The festival will be held at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, where the museum will also offer day trips from the festival to their museum. The trip includes a VIP tour of the museum, lunch, shopping, a swag bag, and refreshments. Full details can be found online at TexasQuiltMuseum.org.
The Texas Quilt Museum is located at 140 W. Colorado St., in La Grange.
