diamonds and bars

On Thursday I spent the day in Karlsruhe to visit a contemporary arts museum for a wonderful exhibit of Amish Quilts.

Diamonds and Bars: The Art of the Amish was wonderful! Most of the quilts were made between about 1880 and 1940 and were from a collector, Maria Schlumberger, and most came from Pennsylvania and Ohio. And most were made of the recognizable simple piecing patterns, solid deep-colored dyes and intricate hand-quilting.

I had never seen such a collection of Amish Quilts in person. I was impressed both by how simple many of the patterns were pieced and yet how amazingly intricate the quilting patterns were...these quilts were deceptively complex. My own quilting seemed so little by comparison...what masterpieces! It made me wish we were moving back to Ohio after all!

Since I can't take you to the exhibit myself (which I would really like to do) then look through this online exhibit of Amish quilts...enjoy!

"--it keeps us warm, it soothes our pain and relieves our burdens, it commemorates important occasions, it preserves family history, it demonstrates skill, it encourages social interaction, and it supports intimate communication." --Robert L. Freeman, A Communion of the Spirts -- African-American Quilters, Preservers and their Stories