Applique Quilt 1935 - 1942

Curator: I’m immediately drawn to the feeling this piece evokes – a tender nostalgia, like childhood summers spent at Grandma’s. The pale ground with those repeated floral motifs, it all hums with warmth. Editor: You’re picking up on exactly what this "Applique Quilt," crafted between 1935 and 1942 by Mildred E. Bent, aimed to achieve. While technically a watercolor painting, its genius lies in simulating the cozy intimacy of textiles. Note the way Bent echoes quilt designs—folk art patterns emphasizing accessible beauty and usefulness. Curator: There's such loving detail in the painting, those hand-painted touches and subtle colour gradations. I can practically feel the maker’s patient hands bringing these designs to life. What strikes me most is its quietness, like a whispered lullaby. Editor: Well, Mildred E. Bent was an extraordinary artist, active during a crucial period in American history, reflecting shifts in how folk art was valued and appreciated. Institutions began celebrating art born outside the established academic world. This coincided with mass production which was perceived to strip handmade craft of authenticity. There was new awareness in cherishing older ways of life. The composition, of floral swags and vases in a balanced but repetitive layout, offers a formal representation of folk traditions rendered through Bent's unique artistic style. Curator: The vases spilling over with posies seem very artful; almost stylized, unlike anything in a "real" quilt. It seems, although it’s a representation, Bent really plays with conventions and flouts traditions in clever ways. I'm also getting an intense sense of place. Can you read that too? Editor: You’re right. By recreating this quilt pattern as art, Bent elevates domestic craft, while simultaneously pointing to how easily such work gets overlooked or dismissed. We're encountering the politics of imagery, folk tradition and watercolor meeting face to face! Her art reminds us about history and cultural status which always have a way to speak back to us when we open to hear it! Curator: Looking at it now, my personal nostalgia fades, but I'm reminded how essential women's history and cultural identity can be; so crucial to who we are and what we appreciate about beauty in the world. Editor: And understanding that history lets us perceive what seemed ordinary – quilts, folk crafts – with radical new perspectives! The beauty indeed lies in our way of seeing.