QUILT INDEX RECORD

8-5-491

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

University of Louisville Archives and Records Center

Who documented this quilt?

Kentucky Quilt Project; Black Diaspora Quilt History Project; Quilts and Human Rights; Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts Collection

Kentucky Quilt Project Number:

34-26-17

Alternate inventory control number:

MMFA Accession #2004.20.8

This is a:

Finished quilt

Owner's name for quilt:

Yesterday: Civil Rights in the South III

How wide is the quilt?

74 1/2"

How long is the quilt?

85 1/2"

Shape of edge:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

Red

Overall color scheme:

Multicolor

Quilt's condition:

Good/moderate use

Notes on condition, damage, or repairs:

This quilt has been conserved.

Type of inscription:

Date; Initials

What is inscribed on the quilt?

YW

What is the date inscribed on the quilt?

1989 (the nines are backwards)

Method used to make the inscription:

Embroidery

Describe the method used to inscribe the quilt:

White cotton thread

Location of inscription:

on border

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt finished?

1989

Describe the quilt's layout:

Pictorial

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton; Cotton or polyester blend; Polyester; Wool

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Attachments (beading, charms, buttons, etc)

Describe the techniques used to make the quilt top:

Plastic buttons

Quilt top made by:

Wells, Yvonne

Where the quilt was made, city:

Tuscaloosa

Where the quilt was made, state:

Alabama (AL)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Gift

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

Gift of Kempf Hogan. Previous owners; Robert Cargo Folk Art Gallery, November 1989 - May 30, 1990, Kempf Hogan, May 30, 1990 - December 10, 2004.

Quilt is presently used as:

Museum collection

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

Birmingham, Michigan, Birmingham Area Seniors Coordinating Council & Center Senior Citizen Center, Quilts, Quilts, Quilts!, May 3, 1990-May 4, 1990

Louisville, Kentucky, The Kentucky Quilt Project, Inc., Louisville Celebrates the American Quilt, November 22, 1991-May 3, 1992

Louisville Celebrates the American Quilt: Narrations - Quilts of Yvonne Wells and Carolyn Mazloomi. Louisville, KY. February 2-March 29, 1992. Louisville Visual Art Association.

Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Just How I Picture It in My Mind: Contemporary African American Quilts from the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, March 1, 2006-May 14, 2006

East Lansing, Michigan, Michigan State University Museum, Quilts and Human Rights, January 15, 2008-May 15, 2008

Troy, Alabama, Troy*Pike Cultural Arts Complex, Just How I Picture It in My Mind: African American Quilts from the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, January 17, 2009-March 29, 2009

From Heart to Hand: African-American Quilts from the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts (Organized by the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Montgomery, Alabama)
Travel to:
Wilmington, North Carolina, Cameron Art Museum, January 28, 2011–April 10, 2011
Provo, Utah, Brigham Young University Museum of Art, July 1, 2011–November 19, 2011
Chicago, Illinois, DePaul Art Museum, April 10, 2014–June 15, 2014
Montclair, New Jersey, Montclair Art Museum, September 20, 2014–January 4, 2015
Flint, Michigan, Flint Institute of Arts, January 24, 2016–April 10, 2016
Albany Museum of Art, Albany, Georgia, November 30, 2017-February 24, 2018

Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Piecing Together History: Civil Rights Quilts by Yvonne Wells, July 27, 2013-August 25, 2013

Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Journey Through the Collection: Docent Choices, August 22, 2015-November 1, 2015

Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Social Justice and Human Rights through Art, April 18, 2018-June 3, 2018 (in honor of the opening of the Equal Justice Initiative's Legacy Museum and National Memorial for Peace and Justice)

Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Yvonne Wells, July 22, 2022-October 16, 2022

Publications (including web sites) where this quilt or maker was featured:

Clarke, Georgine. Alabama Masters: Artists and Their Work, Alabama State Council of the Arts, Montgomery, AL, April 2008, pp. 96-97

Huff, Mary Elizabeth Johnson. Just How I Picture It in My Mind: Contemporary African American Quilts from the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts and River City Publishing, Montgomery, Alabama, 2006, 82-83

MacDowell, Marsha; Worrall, Mary; Swanson, Lynne; Donaldson, Beth. Quilts and Human Rights. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2016. page 36.

Sartorius, Tara Cady. Soulful Survivor Sewing, Arts and Activities, February, 2009, 22-24.

Morgan, Dr. Stacy I. The Story Quilts of Yvonne Wells, The University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 2024.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Public Museum, Library, or Institution

Quilt owner's name:

Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts

Quilt owner's city:

Montgomery

Quilt owner's state:

Alabama (AL)

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Description of quilt:

Transcript of an interview with Yvonne Wells discussing her quilts conducted by Dr. Robert Cargo in Tuscaloosa, AL on May 3, 1990. Recording in Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts Archives.

Story about this quilt:

Yesterday: The Civil Rights Movement in the South [III] is by far one of the most touching pieces that I have made. It is by far the most colorful pieces that I have made. It is intended to show things that happened during those turbulent years of the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s, and probably some now. But it is never intended to embarrass or make someone ashamed. This is not my intent. My intent is from an artistic standpoint. Some of the events may be factual and some may not be so factual. You will notice that this is made on a red background. During those years there were a lot of fights, a lot of fires, a lot of bloodshed, and this is why it is on the red background. Allow me to start explaining this. Down at the bottom, you will notice a black guy is bringing or rowing in on the Mayflower a White person. And as he enters into the United States, if you will look at that, that’s the United States of America. They came into the United States an as they came in, some things were very prevalent. They noticed that there were people picking cotton, and as they moved about and as years went by, there were people hung from a tree. Some of this happened yesterday but some of this is still happening now and, if you will look at the person hanging, you will see that this was freshly done and he is still swinging. At the bottom, during the 50’s, a lady called Rosa Parks was instrumental in starting the famous bus boycott that happened there. Two whites and one black, but the reverse happened once Rosa Parks got into the bus. Also, there is a strip of black and brown material and there are some names. If you can remember, that in Mississippi there were three young voter rights workers, or civil rights workers. These people came to Mississippi in order to pursue the dream of registering all persons to vote and, in so doing, they were slain and buried, and we will remember that they were found in a ditch or in a field in Mississippi. Those guys were Schwerner, Chaney and Goodman. Those little pieces of material, two white and one black, and with thread over it, indicate that those were the bodies of those three young men that were found when they did go so looking for them in Mississippi. Up to the left, you will notice that this is the scene of the bombing of the church in Birmingham, where we had the young girls who were killed there. They were buried on the church grounds. This is the bombing of the church.

As we proceed, you will notice there is a piece of camouflage material on this scene. This is the scene where George C. Wallace, who was then the governor of Alabama, stood in the doorway so that Vivian Malone, or any other student of black color, could not enter into the University of Alabama, and you will recall at the time they federalized the National Guard so that this young lady could go to the University of Alabama. Atop that building is a piece of a cap that Bear Bryant wore, and I used part of that hat to make a flag indicating that that was the University of Alabama. Down just below that, you will find that there are Klansmen. There are certain groups of people who are hate groups. Some people don’t like each other and this is indicated by showing that they were cross-burners, and there in the middle of the quilt you will notice that the cross is burning. Atop that you will see very dark piece and you can hardly see a figure in there. During that time, a lot of things were done in the dark. Some sneaky things. But there is a shining star that is very prevalent and you can see that. That figure is the figure of Bull Conner, and Bull Conner was the sheriff at that time. He was the person who used the dog, if you see the dog on the leash, to bite the marchers as they marched. To the right, you will find the Capitol of Alabama and atop of it are the flags that are still there now, but in a different setting. You will notice that the Confederate flag is atop the American flag and the Alabama flag is at the bottom, but it has since been changed now so that the American flag can be atop of the Capitol.

There is a line of a number of people marching around this big bright sunshine. You will notice that they are holding hands and they are marching, and they are marching, and they are marching. They did this for years, they did this for months. And they did this on and on through the day and through the night. As they march, they were singing the famous song during that time, We Shall Overcome. You will notice that all of the marchers are not all black. All around the sunshine there are some white people who did come in and march also. As they are marching, you will see a man in yellow, who is a fireman, and you could look at the vibration in his hand is where he is using the force of the water to spray the marchers. And you will see this little gentleman with the green pants suit on and a black check handkerchief in his pocket. He is being sprayed by the marcher [she means the fireman]. There is a White lady went on the road to Selma, the famed march. When they got to the Edmund Pettis Bridge, they killed the White lady. Her name was Viola Liuzzo. She was one of the great people who did lose her life during these times. Notice at the bottom or at the foot of the man in yellow, who is a fireman, you’ll find that there were water fountains and each one was designated to be for white race and the colored race and you will see that is there. Now, on each of my quilts you will find a little symbol that looks like a triangle and, if you will look at the top of the quilt, you will find three, right above the Capitol and those triangles have a very deep meaning. They are in the shape of Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. You will find those in each one of my pieces of artwork. Now, there is a symbol that very prominent in this quilt. If you will look at the top, and there is a yellow piece of material that has polka dots in it, and at each point there is a piece of black. On those black pieces you will find three names, and these people were very instrumental in the civil rights of others and they are Abraham, Martin and John. In the middle of this piece of polka dot material you will see an eye and that is the All-Seeing Eye of God. In the middle of the quilt, the man who was very instrumental in getting all of this started is Martin Luther King. If you will notice, he is standing at his podium delivering all of his speeches he has ever made. This is what I have him doing in this quilt. This is Martin Luther King in the sunshine. He is in the sunshine because there was a ray of hope, and, as history will have it, there was hope and there were some changes that took place during that time. And this quilt is called Yesterday.”

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, all rights reserved.