NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Harriet Powers

African American slave folk artist Harriet Powers (October 29, 1837 – January 1, 1910) was a quilt maker from rural Georgia, United States. Now nationally recognized for her quilts, she used traditional appliqué techniques to record local legends, Bible stories, and astronomical events on her quilts. Only two of her quilts have survived: Bible Quilt 1886 and Bible Quilt 1898. Considered among the finest examples of nineteenth-century Southern quilting, the beauty of Powers's work elevated these quilts above race and class. Her work is on display at the National Museum of American History in Washington, DC and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts. October 29 is the 302nd day of the year (303rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... | Queen Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom (1837 - 1901) 1837 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_States. ... Clarke County is a county in the Georgia. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Sunday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_States. ... Clarke County is a county in the Georgia. ... Quilting is a method of sewing or tying two layers of cloth with a layer of insulating batting in between. ... An African American (also Afro-American, Black American, or simply black) is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ... October 29 is the 302nd day of the year (303rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... | Queen Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom (1837 - 1901) 1837 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Sunday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... An example of a patchwork quilt. ... State nickname: Peach State / Empire of the South Other U.S. States Capital Atlanta Largest city Atlanta Governor Sonny Perdue Official languages English Area 154,077 km² (24th) - Land 150,132 km² - Water 3,945 km² (2. ... The National Museum of American History is a museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution and located in Washington, D.C., on the National Mall. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... Paul Gauguin, Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? (Doù venons-nous? Que faisons-nous? Où allons-nous?) (1897). ...

Biography

Early life

Powers born October 29, 1837 to slaves near Athens, Georgia. For most of her life she lived in Clarke County, mainly in Sandy Creek and Buck Branch. Wiktionary has related dictionary definitions, such as: slave Slave may refer to: Slavery, where people are owned by others, and live to serve their owners without pay Slave (BDSM), a form of sexual and consenual submission Slave clock, in technology, a clock or timer that synchrnonizes to a master clock... Athens is a city in Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, U.S., in the northeastern part of the state, at the eastern terminus of Georgia 316. ... Clarke County is a county in the Georgia. ...

Career

At age 49, Powers began exhibiting her quilts in 1886, when one was shown at a cotton fair in Athens; it is this quilt that is now in the Smithsonian Institution. Jennie Smith, an artist and art teacher from the Lucy Cobb Institute, saw the quilt at the fair and asked to purchase it, but Powers refused to sell. The two women remained in touch, however, and when five years later Powers met with financial difficulties, she agreed to sell the piece for five dollars. At the same time Powers explained the imagery on the quilt; Smith recorded these explanations, adding notes of her own. The Smithsonian Institution Building or Castle on the National Mall serves as the Institutions headquarters. ...

The history of the second quilt is unclear; one account suggests that it was commissioned by the wives of faculty members of Atlanta University, who had seen the first quilt at the Cotton States Exhibition in Atlanta in 1895. According to another source, the quilt was purchased in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1898. Whatever its origins, the piece was presented to the Reverend Charles Cuthbert Hall of New York City, who was serving as the chairman of the university's board of trustees at the time. The reverend's heirs sold the quilt to collector Maxim Karolik, who then donated it to the museum in Boston. Clark Atlanta University (CAU) is a private, undergraduate and graduate institution educational institution in Atlanta, Georgia. ... Nickname: Music City; Buckle of the Bible Belt Location in Davidson County and the state of Tennessee Coordinates: Country United States State Tennessee Counties Davidson County Founded: 1779 Incorporated: 1806 Mayor Bill Purcell (D) Area - City 526. ... Nickname: Big Apple, City that never Sleeps Location in the state of New York Coordinates: Country United States State New York Boroughs Bronx (The Bronx) New York (Manhattan) Queens (Queens) Kings (Brooklyn) Richmond (Staten Island) Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Area - City 1,214. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Board of directors. ...

Powers died on January 1, 1910, and was buried in the Gospel Pilgrim Cemetery in Athens. Powers grave was rediscovered in January, 2005.

Work

Bible Quilt 1886 and Bible Quilt 1898 consist of numerous pictorial squares depicting either biblical scenes or celestial phenomena. Hand and machine stitched, they were made through appliqué and piecework, demonstrating both African and African-American influences; they are notable for their bold use of these techniques in storytelling. The reason for Powers' interest in celestial bodies is unclear; it has been suggested that they had religious significance for her, or were related to a fraternal organization of some sort. Her interpretations of both quilts have survived, though they likely have been influenced by their recorders. Powers herself may have been illiterate, and might have used the quilts as teaching tools. The Bible (From Greek βιβλια—biblia, meaning books, which in turn is derived from βυβλος—byblos meaning papyrus, from the ancient Phoenician city of Byblos which exported papyrus) is the sacred scripture of Christianity. ... The term celestial refers to the sky and/or Heaven. ... Stitch can refer to: Medical stitches, sutures A side stitch, an intense stabbing pain during exercise. ... Applique (or appliquÃ©) is a technique in which pieces of fabric are sewn onto a foundation piece of fabric to create designs. ... It has been suggested that piece rate be merged into this article or section. ... For other uses, see Africa (disambiguation). ... Note: This page is 84 kilobytes long. ... Literacy is the ability to use text to communicate across space and time. ...

Bible Quilt 1886

Bible Quilt 1898

Harriet Powers Biographies

Jean-François Millet Le Semeur (The Sower) Simon & Schuster logo, circa 1961. ...

Reference

See also

Baltimore Album Quilts originated in Baltimore, Maryland in the 1840s. ... A counterpane is an old-fashioned term for a bed cover or bedspread. ... The term crazy quilting is often used to refer to the textile art of crazy patchwork and is sometimes used interchangeably with that term. ... A double duvet. ... Quilting as we know it today evolved during the 19th century. ... Slave sale in Easton, Maryland The history of slavery in the United States began soon after Europeans first settled in what in 1776 became the United States. ... The AIDS Quilt The AIDS Memorial Quilt is an enormous quilt made as a memorial to and celebration of the lives of people who have died of AIDS-related causes. ... A patchwork quilt is a quilt in which the top layer consists of patchwork consisting of pieces of fabric sewn together to form a design. ... Example of patchwork. ... An example of a patchwork quilt. ... Quilting is a method of sewing or tying two layers of cloth with a layer of insulating batting in between. ...

External links

Categories: African American artists | American quilter artist | American slaves | Georgia artists | Outsider artists | Quilters | Quilting | Religion artists | Textile artists | Women in art | 1837 births | 1910 deaths October 29 is the 302nd day of the year (303rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... | Queen Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom (1837 - 1901) 1837 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Clarke County is a county in the Georgia. ... April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 248 days remaining. ... Events January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther in the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Sunday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ...

Contents

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