Wild by Design: Two Hundred Years of Innovation and Artistry in American Quilts

Wild by Design explores the 200-year-old American tradition of freewheeling, improvisational, often asymmetrical quilts, whose makers experimented boldly with design, colour and pictorial motifs. It examines both the aesthetics and the social history of quilts from the early 19th century to the present, including Amish, African American and modern art quilts. From the state fair to the clothesline, women have sought ways to exhibit the beauty and optical effects of their quilts. The quilting frolic of the 19th century was for many women an alternative to the art academy and the salon. Janet Berlo reminds readers that quilts were a valued form of artistic expression, meant to be shared and admired among the company of other women. Over 50 applique and pieced quilts are illustrated, chosen from the collections of the International Quilt Study Center for their outstanding visual qualities. Each is accompanied by a lively dialogue among quilt experts that illustrates the varied dimensions of quilts as aesthetic objects of the highest order and as reflections of the lives and societies of their makers. This multifaceted analysis of quilts sheds light on the histories of women, textiles and American art and culture.