annie mae.

there are some works of art that just ring out to you. pieces that stay fresh no matter how many times you see them.

one of those works, for me, is a quilt by annie mae young. one of the many amazing quilters from gee's bend, alabama.

when we got to maine, i noticed my mother in-law had a thick color catalogue of the women of gee's bend and the work they have done there with fabric and thread. i was more than thrilled to dig into that sucker.

this quilt uses old work clothes to create the blue rectangles and corduroy for the warm rectangles in the center.

what about it gets to me?

the contrast between warm and cool?
the contrast between old, worn material and the new?
the irregularity of the rectangles that give it a sense of movement and life?
the simplicity of the composition?
the abstract nature of it that still reveals to me the poetry of looking out a window towards the sun setting in the sky?

its got so much going on. i love it.

as i was looking though the book i came across this photograph from the mid nineties of annie mae and one of her great grand daughters in front of her quilts. my favorite is open on top. i find it surreal how all her work is there. in a pile.

thank you nancy for having this book at your place, so i could revisit this work.

thank you annie mae for taking what you had around and making such wonderful things of beauty with them.