Feature Stories 2017: The Vernacular Coverlet

Fold Unfold exhibition
Intro to Weaving students with instructor Suzi Ballenger
Feature Stories 2017: The Vernacular Coverlet
The Vernacular Coverlet

Intro to Weaving students participated in a national exhibit at Lyndon House Arts Center in Athens Georgia titled Fold Unfold.

Rachel Benevidies, Rachel Browned, Jeanine Cappuccino, Zhaoyong Chen, Jamie Collet, Elizabeth Gould, Melissa Hacienda, Sarah Monroe, Tess Oldfield, Addie Thibeault, Tania Vasconceios, and Quianna Walker wove traditional New England Overshot "samples" that were then stitched onto cloth woven at The American Textile History Museum in Lowell, MA.

The poetic names of coverlet patterns vary from region to region. All the patterns presented on this friendship style coverlet are vernacular to New England. Recorded, written, and or designed by William Henry Harrison Rose (mid 1800s) or Bertha G. Hayes (mid 1900s) these designs represent our early American heritage.

Each weaver chose one of these drafts to re-interpret: Catalpa Flowers, Primrose in Diamonds, Wandering Vine, Foursquare, Isaac's Favorite, Serenity of Salem, Waldenweave, Filigree, Old Fashioned Garden, lambeth Walk, Estrellita, Sweet and lovely, and Flowers of Cromaine.

These undergraduates have embraced a shared history and to understand the unique architecture and aesthetics of building cloth and connecting to community.

"The Vernacular Coverlet" will be on display from June 24 to August 19, 2017.

More information

UMASSD Textile Design/Fiber Arts program
Fold Unfold
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