Nelson Gallery

The African-American made quilts shown at the Richard L. Nelson Gallery show more than beauty and craftsmanship, they certainly tell stories and invoke feelings and memories of hardship and hope. The quilts speak of hard-lived lives and of morality and ideals. Through their dark and bold colors and the off-kilter juxtaposition of line, this artwork truly represents the purpose of art itself.

Color plays a huge role at this gallery, throwing together mixes of dark and bold or the more subtle flashes of bright color. Dark lines dominate this particular quilt, casting shadow on the whole piece. Darkness for this artist represents the sorrow, hate, pain, and work which soiled America during slavery. However, the darkness of the quilt is broken up by flashes of meek yellow and a hearty pink. These small bits show the hope and perseverance which, despite hardship, manage to shine through and contend for dominance amongst such shadow.

In addition to being lit by pieces of color, this quilt's dark, bold lines are brought to a stop by each other as well. The positioning of the quilt's squares allows each piece to stand out on its own, while it also recedes into a background all together. The bold lines which pop out, are forced to break and make way for the lines of another piece; preventing dark colors from overwhelming any one piece of the quilt. Such juxtaposition represents coexistence as well as conflict. Each separate square has its own colors, its own dark mood. Yet when sandwiched by its surrounding squares, one squares colors compete with those of the others, despite similarity. The squares, like people, have their own identity and emotion; both of which are put in check by the proximity of other squares, causing conflicting eye line and a possibly confusing pattern. However, when viewed at a distance, the quilt is harmonious and flowing as a whole.

Though the dark lines and competing squares represent the hardships of slavery and the sad conflicts of humanity, the pops of color and the overall harmony of this quilt hint at hope and a will to overcome.