The “Storied Quilts” exhibit features 14 quilts from the Legacy in Motion series by Eugene Poole, a Kentucky native and self-taught artist whose debut quilt series focuses on Black jockeys who won the Kentucky Derby. Photo furnished
At the Headley-Whitney Museum, the walls are decked with more than 70 quilts for an exhibition exploring themes of community, history and identity through the art of quiltmaking. On display through Dec. 6, “Storied Quilts: The Art of Quilts and the Stories They Tell” highlights the many ways artists use quilting to transform personal experiences and collective histories into art.
“Quilts are an art form in and of themselves, and what particularly interested me is stories — what those quilters are trying to express and say,” said Christina Bell, the museum’s executive director and curator of the exhibit. “I found that fascinating.”
Bell began developing the exhibition about a year and a half ago, reaching out to museums and collectors to bring together the collection of works currently on display. Rather than creating a historical survey of quilting, she wanted to focus on the art itself and the different ways artists use various quilting techniques to communicate their ideas.
That approach is reflected in the variety of work visitors will encounter throughout the exhibition. Featuring audio/visual elements, artist talks and other interactive events, she describes the exhibit as an “immersive experience,” where audiences will have the opportunity to explore a variety of approaches and perspectives.
One of those contemporary perspectives comes from Kentucky native artist Dr. Eugene Poole. Born in Hopkinsville, Ky., Poole is an architect and certified project manager who oversaw the restoration of the United States Capitol dome, among other noteworthy design projects for the U.S. government. He’s also a self-taught artist who began working with quilts during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite having never sewn before.
Following a long history of drawing and painting that started when he was a child, he was drawn to quilting as a new way to work with color, texture and composition. Eventually he developed a process that combines traditional quilting techniques with portraiture, incorporating his background in other forms of visual arts as well as his background in architecture.
On Oct. 18, Dr. Eugene Poole will be onsite to give an artist talk at the Headley-Whitney Museum about the works in his Legacy in Motion quilt series. Photo by Breven Walker of 859 Photography
“I began watching videos of women making quilts, and became fascinated, not by the traditional circles, squares, triangles and rectangles, but by the process itself and its possibilities,” Poole said. “I began asking myself how I could take the traditional craft of quilting and transform it into something different, something more meaningful.”
Poole’s work in the Headley-Whitney exhibit come from his series “Legacy in Motion: Black Jockey Kentucky Derby Winners,” a collection of large-scale textile portraits honoring Black jockeys who won the Kentucky Derby and helped shape the early history of American Thoroughbred racing.
The idea for the series came after a friend asked Poole if he knew about the Black jockeys of the Kentucky Derby. Although Poole grew up in Kentucky and was of course familiar with the famous race, he realized he knew little about the jockeys themselves. He began researching their stories and eventually shifted his artistic focus to highlight these men have made important contributions to the horse industry, but whose stories have rarely been highlighted.
Poole created a total of 31 works for “Legacy in Motion,” with 14 of those quilts on display at the Headley-Whitney Museum. Many of the figures are created at or near life-size scale, with vibrant colors, layered fabric and detailed stitching, all deliberate design choices intended to give the subjects nuance and a strong physical presence.
“I do not want visitors simply to look at history from a distance — I want them to emotionally encounter these men, to stand before them almost person-to-person,” he said.
Another section of the exhibition highlights the work of late Kentucky artist Rebekka Seigel. Seigel’s work includes her “Women’s Work” series, which features quilts depicting notable women from different fields, in the style of paper dolls. The works on display at the “Storied Quilts” exhibit includes quilts portraying Martha Graham, Pearl Buck, Lucy Martin, Rachel Carson, Louise Nevelson, Barbara Jordan and Kentucky folk musician Jean Ritchie.
Bell said she was particularly interested in featuring work from Seigel’s “Women’s Work” series because she was drawn to the fact that the artist’s portrayal of highly accomplished women who led the way in their field — “powerful, creative women who made a positive and lasting impact.”
“I believe Seigel’s art did that as well,” she said.
Another notable installment of the exhibition is a room featuring quilts from Gee’s Bend, an isolated community in the Black rural belt of Alabama that produced quilts that are widely considered to be among the most significant contributions to art history. The quilts featured in the exhibit were collected by Linda Bruckheimer and are being displayed alongside materials such as videos and books that provide visitors with more information about the community and its history.
The exhibition also features the work of Kentucky folk artists Minnie Adkins and Lonnie and Twyla Money, alongside artists who take a more contemporary approach to quilting.
Bell says the range of quilts was intentional, allowing the exhibition to show that quilting, as an artistic medium, can manifest differently depending on the artist.
The exhibit features more than 70 quilts in a variety of styles, including work by Arturo Sandoval, Rebekka Seigel, and Lauren Gregory (pictured above from left to right). Images furnished
“The are all individually very different in their artistic styles,” she said. “I think that’s in part what makes this exhibit so interesting.”
For Bell, bringing together artists with such different approaches is part of what makes the exhibition work. Rather than limiting the collection to one particular style, she wanted visitors to see the range of possibilities within quilting, from traditional techniques and community-based traditions to contemporary fine art.
That variety also makes the exhibition accessible to visitors who may not consider themselves knowledgeable about quilting or art, which meets one of her larger goals for the museum: to create exhibitions that people can engage with without feeling as though they need to understand art history or know how to interpret a particular work before walking through the doors.
She hopes the museum can provide a place where people can simply experience the work and enjoy being there.
For “Storied Quilts,” that experience begins with the quilts themselves, but extends far beyond their construction. The exhibition offers visitors an opportunity to look closely at the different materials, techniques and craftsmanship while also considering the wide range of stories and experiences represented in the work.
“I’m trying very specifically to make art accessible by offering exhibits with a wide range of relatable subjects,” Bell said. “I’m intentional about joyfulness — I find that providing a place for people to see art and get away for a moment from all that is going on in our lives, is very needed and hopefully helps inspires their own creativity.”
At its center, the exhibition is about bringing those individual stories together, and for Bell, that means creating a space where people can come together, see the work, and find something of their own in the stories being told through fabric.
“Storied Quilts: The Art of Quilts and the Stories They Tell” will be on display through Dec. 6. The Headley-Whitney Museum is open Fri.-Sun., 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. The museum has planned a series of artist talks and other events, including a talk with Dr. Eugene Poole on Oct. 18, a talk with Nellie Seigel (daughter of Rebecca Seigel) on Oct. 11, a gallery tour and talk with National Quilt Museum founder Victoria Faoro on Oct. 24 and Nov. 8, and more. More information on these events and more can be found online at www.headley-whitney.org.
Click here for a full interview with Dr. Eugene Poole about his process and approach!