Originally Posted by Sierra

I don't think of Gee's Bend quilters as "artistic" in the sense I think most people here are referring to which is deliberately arranging fabric (and now "embelishments") to make an outstanding design or picture. No doubt they were (and are) artist, but they were extremely poor and used what they could get to make a quilt of love, not of astounding beauty. The designs were innate and organic, like their music. Perhaps if you are beautiful enough on the inside it shows on the outside. Their quilts show us an ultimate in quilting in so far as with very little you can make an object of love and astounding beauty. They were not bound (could not afford to be bound) by the limits of blocks and yet they made those wonderful quilts... and thereby freed many of us who have been stuck within the block concept. Ahhhh, thank you lovely ladies from Gee's Bend!