While a video of quilters singing Negro spirituals softly plays in the background, the coal-black and fire-engine red quilt made from scraps of cotton and corduroy hangs still at the Missouri History Museum.
The sky-blue denim quilt made of worn-out work clothes stands motionless, too.
But as visitors pass the quilts, they see life in them.
They say a lively spirit of tenacity, self-determination and joy is present within every quilt and sculpture showcased in “Mary Lee Bendolph, Gee’s Bend Quilts, and Beyond” a 6,000-square-foot exhibit that opened this month at the Missouri History Museum.
In addition to Bendolph’s artwork, the exhibition also showcases the work of three of Bendolph’s close relatives, as well as two contemporary Alabama-based artists who have been inspired by the quilts of Gee’s Bend. The exhibition will be at the museum until September 13.
Billie Simpson and her 93-year-old mother Evelyn Meni walked slowly through the exhibit on her mother’s birthday recently. The pair walked arm-in-arm, studying each quilt and sculpture carefully.
“It brought tears to my eyes,” Simpson said. “The spirit of these women. … It’s a beautiful story.”
Bascom Curator Sharon Smith agreed. “There is a power here that catches you,” Smith said. “These are not just quilts. There is something more.”
Some say the spirit is the distinctive, bold and non-conforming quilting style that slaves passed down to their descendants of Gee’s Bend, which is a small isolated rural community in Alabama. The tradition has continued for at least six generations.
Others say the spirit reflects the experiences that the quilters and their families endured during the Civil Rights Movement. “They talk about the Civil Rights Movement and being tear gassed,” Smith said. “Their story has so much history.”
Lisa Gilbert, education coordinator at the museum, agreed. Gilbert uses the exhibit to teach school tours about geometry, math, design and the Civil Rights Movement. “When you look at the ladies of Gee’s Bend, they weren’t satisfied,” she said. “But they still sought to create beauty in the midst of adversity.”
Mary Lee Bendolph, the main quilter featured in the exhibit, said the spirit is all of that. And she said it is embodied in the cloth she uses. Although she can now afford to purchase new cloth to design quilts because of her notoriety and new wealth, she does not.
“It’d be a pleasure to buy some new cloth … way back when I didn’t have any money. Now, I can have it, but I see the value of the leftover cloth,” Bendolph has said.
“Old clothes have the spirit, and I don’t want to leave the spirit out. The spirit is all we had to lead and guide us back in the day, and it still is.”
The Gee’s Bend quilters are the descendants of slaves who worked on cotton plantations owned by the Gee and Pettway families of Gee’s Bend, Alabama. After the Civil War, former slaves became tenant farmers and founded the all-black community nearly isolated from the rest of the world.
Gee’s Bend became an important part of the 1960s Freedom Quilting Bee, an offshoot of the Civil Rights movement designed to boost family income and foster community development by selling handcrafts to outsiders. Many of the Gee’s Bend quilters participated in the Freedom Quilting Bee.
Bendolph gained national attention when her work was featured in the 2002 exhibition and book The Quilts of Gee’s Bend. The quilters fame has allowed them to travel around the country to talk about quilting and their community. Some had never been outside Alabama. Bendolph has said that she once received only $5 per quilt. Now, she can earn $2,000 or more for a quilt.
Meni, who grew up during the Great Depression, said she is happy that the Gee’s Bend quilters received attention that allowed them to prosper and see the world beyond Alabama. “I can relate to them. We had hard times, too,” Meni said. “It makes me feel good to hear their story.”
The cost to tour the exhibit is $5 for adults; $4 for seniors/students/groups; $3 for children ages 6-12. Admission is free for children who are 5 and younger. Call 314-746-4599 or visit www.mohistory.org for more information.
