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Afro-American Women and Quilts; Cuesta's Sampler; Sampler

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QUILT INDEX RECORD

12-8-5240

Who documented this quilt?

Kentucky Quilt Project; Michigan Quilt Project; Michigan State University Museum Collection; Quilts and Human Rights; Black Diaspora Quilt History Project; Cuesta Benberry Collection

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Michigan State University Museum

Michigan Quilt Project Number:

08.0061

If this quilt is owned by a museum, enter the accession number:

2008:119.1; Kentucky Quilt Project Number: 34-17-35

Object label:

Afro-AmericanWomen and Quilts
Cuesta Benberry, Annette Ammen, Lois Mueller and the Kinloch Community Center Ladies
St. Louis, Missouri
1979
Collection of Michigan State University Museum acc.#2008:119.1

Essay:

Afro-American Women and Quilts is the only quilt that Cuesta Benberry made. In every block of this sampler quilt, Cuesta uses a visual symbol to pay tribute to quilts made by different African-American quiltmakers.

By Mary Worrall, from the exhibit Unpacking Collections: the Legacy of Cuesta Benberry, An African American Quilt Scholar.

Quilt's title:

Afro-American Women and Quilts

Owner's name for the quilt:

Cuesta's Sampler

Names for quilt's pattern in common use:

Sampler

When was the form filled out?

4/22/08

Quilt top made by:

Benberry, Cuesta

Quilted by:

Kinlock Community Center Ladies

Other people who worked on this quilt:

Ammen, Annette; Mueller, Lois

If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?

Received as a gift

Where the quilt was made, city:

St. Louis

Where the quilt was made, state:

Missouri (MO)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt finished?

1979

Why was the quilt made?

Teaching or learning sample

Details about why the quilt was made:

Made as a lecture tool.

Quilt is presently used as:

Museum collection

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's city:

St. Louis

Quiltmaker's state:

Missouri (MO)

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

African American

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

1

This is a:

Finished quilt

How wide is the quilt?

53"

How long is the quilt?

78"

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

Blue; Brown; Purple; Red; Yellow; White

Quilt's condition:

Very good/almost new

Type of inscription:

Message

What is inscribed on the quilt?

Mother! When around your child
You clasp your arms in love
And when with grateful joy
You raise to God above---
Your eyes,
Think of the Negro mother;
When her child is torn away---
Sold for a little slave--oh, then,
For that mother, Pray!

Method used to make the inscription:

Ink

Location of inscription:

on block

Describe where the inscription was found:

in the center block of the quilt

Describe the quilt's layout:

Block pattern

Number of quilt blocks:

12

Size of quilt blocks:

13 1/2" x 13 1/2"

Arrangement of quilt blocks:

Straight

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Separated by plain sashing

Number of borders:

2

Describe the borders:

3" plain

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Print; Solid/plain

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Machine Piecing

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique; Reverse Applique

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Embroidery

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

How is the binding made?

Back turned to front

What is the width of the binding (measure on the top only)?

greater than one inch

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Polyester

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

5

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

5

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Outline

Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:

Each block is different and signifies something of importance in African American women's quiltmaking experiences. From left to right, top row: 1. A red and white pieced block wih diamonds and a red center red square; (Note: this block was from an Arkansas woman, formerly a neighbor). 2. A block replicated from Harriet Powers' "Bible" quilt in applique, featuring Jesus' baptism, two figures and the Holy spirit symbolized by an applique dove; (Note: the original quilt is in the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.) 3. A block in dark blue and white with reverse applique; (Note: This design was made by a slave from North Carolina). Second row, left to right: 1. A pieced and appliqued flower in navy blue, teal and orange with a green stem; (This pattern was taken from the Freedom Quilting Bee, forerunners of today's Gee's Bend Quilters). 2. A "Variable Star" block out of red and white cotton with the following poem (sent by Jinny Beyer from The Liberator) inked in the center: Mother! When around your child You clasp your arms in love And when with grateful joy You raise to God above--- Your eyes, Think of the Negro mother; When her child is torn away--- Sold for a little slave--oh, then, For that mother, Pray! A tulip applique block in green, purple, and red; (Note: This pattern was from the WPA project that collected quilt designs). Third row, left to right. 1. "Buzzard's Roost" (note: this block was found in a former slave cabin) A pieced block in brown and white with an eagle quilted in the center; 2. A flowering vine in applique wiht green leaves and red, yellow and blue blooms; (A Nancy Cabot design) and 3. "Robbing Peter to Pay Paul" block with print navy fabric used with white. Note: Florence Peto used this block in the end paper of her book and mentioned that a slave had made this quilt. Fourth row, left to right. 1. "Lady's Shoe" applique in solid red and white (This is a replica of a block from a Benberry family quilt); 2. A "brick" quilt in various fabrics cut in strips of varying lengths; 3. An African woman depicted in applique with a clay pot.

Describe the source of the pattern:

Annette Ammen's husband George drew many of the designs.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

Louisville Celebrates the American Quilt: Always There - The African American Presence in American Quilts. Louisville, KY. February 7-March 31, 1992. Louisville Museum of History and Science.

This quilt has been photographed and shown in various venues across the United States. It has been photograhed in books, including "Always There."

Unpacking Collections: The Legacy of Cuesta Benberry, An African American Quilt Scholar. East Lansing, Michigan. 2010. Michigan State University Museum. Patterns of Inquiry: Quilts in Research and Education. East Lansing, Michigan. 2012. Michigan State University Museum.

Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:

This quilt was previously documented by the Kentucky Quilt Project, #34-17-35.

Source of the information on this quilt:

MSU Museum employee

Ownership of this quilt is:

Public- Michigan State University Museum

Quilt owner's name:

Michigan State University Museum

Quilt owner's city:

East Lansing

Quilt owner's county:

Ingham

Quilt owner's state:

Michigan (MI)

Quilt owner's country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Gift

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

This quilt was made by Cuesta Benberry to further her research on African American quiltmaking. Her son donated the collection to the Michigan State University Museum when she passed away in 2007.

Describe anything about the history of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:

Each block signifies something of importance in African American women's quiltmaking experiences.

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?

Participated in group quilting

The quilt was made to be used for:

Artwork/wall hanging

Describe anything about the design of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:

Annette Ammen's husband George drew many of the designs.

Who photographed this quilt?

Pearl Yee Wong

Copyright holder:

MSU Board of Trustees, all rights reserved

Cite this Quilt

Benberry, Cuest. Afro-American Women and Quilts. 1979. From Michigan State University Museum, Kentucky Quilt Project; Michigan Quilt Project; Michigan State University Museum Collection; Quilts and Human Rights; Black Diaspora Quilt History Project; Cuesta Benberry Collection. Published in The Quilt Index, https://quiltindex.org/view/?type=fullrec&kid=12-8-5240. Accessed: 10/11/24

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