Patchwork Quilt 1935 - 1942

Edmond W. Brown made this Patchwork Quilt drawing sometime in his life using red ink, and graphite. The pattern repeats like a simple song, red triangles, then white, around and around to the center. It’s art as a process, each mark building on the last. Looking at the texture, you can almost feel the paper and the delicate marks of the graphite, a ghostly grid under the strong red ink. I keep thinking about the bottom row of birds, or are they leaves, or flames? – all marching along the edge with slight differences, little imperfections that make them feel alive. That handmade quality gets me every time. I'm reminded of the work of the Gee's Bend quilters, with their improvisational approach to design. This drawing invites us to think about the labor, love, and stories stitched into every quilt, real or imagined. It’s like a conversation across time, a reminder that art is always talking to art.