Woven Coverlet c. 1939

This coverlet was woven by Edith Magnette, though the woven text on it suggests it may date from 1838. The use of just two colours, a creamy white and a deep brick red, makes me think about the artmaking process. I love how the blocks of colour create forms and patterns that seem both folksy and sophisticated. The texture looks relatively smooth, and I imagine the physicality of repeatedly passing the threads back and forth to create the image. The letters and floral patterns give a clue to the symbolic language of the piece and what the coverlet might have meant to its maker. See the way ‘UNION’ is woven? And then reflected, like a mirror image underneath? It’s so interesting and points to the maker's unique perspective. It makes me think of Gee’s Bend quilts and the work of other women artists like Sophie Taeuber-Arp, who embraced craft techniques and abstraction, proving that art can be many things at once. These artists aren’t afraid to play with tradition, creating something totally fresh. I love that ambiguity.