Coverlet c. 1941

This striking Coverlet by Byron Dingman is like a daydream spun from thread, probably made with stencils. The red and white patterns create an intense visual buzz, don’t they? I imagine Dingman carefully placing each stencil, inking the red dye, and lifting it to reveal these ghostly motifs. Those birds and deer, almost heraldic, feel like they come from a storybook or maybe a family crest, like a memory slowly fading into abstraction. I wonder what it was like for Dingman, repeating these patterns, finding that rhythm between control and letting go? I bet he was thinking about how it would feel to sleep under this, tucked in dreaming of flying eagles and enchanted forests. Folk art like this always reminds me that art isn’t just in museums. It’s in our homes, in our hands, and in our hearts. It’s about making something beautiful and useful at the same time. And that’s an idea I can cozy up to.