Stitching Together History

Four quilts made for the Stitching Together History special exhibition at the Virginia Quilt Museum.

Each quilt is 20 x 20 inches.

The American Chestnut tree was a keystone species in the Eastern US, including much of Virginia and West Virginia. It provided food for wildlife; when the nut burrs fell, it made a sound like thunder in the forest. Many parts of the trees were used by Indigenous peoples and then by European settlers, from house lumber to railroad ties to furniture. From the late 1880s to the 1950s, introduced blights killed the Chestnuts in their entire range, completely changing the forest ecology. Memories of presence of the chestnut died out in just a few generations. However, scientists are developing disease-resistant strains, and one important test site is in the State Arboretum of Virginia, near Boyce. Not all have been successful but the future is promising.

Data centers are being built across the state, in both urban and rural areas. The increase is driven by our insatiable usage of the Internet and even more, Artificial Intelligence, which takes an incredible amount of electricity to generate. Neighborhoods are being overwhelmed by the physical presence and noise of these buildings. The power grid struggles to keep up.

With my modification of the traditional “School House” block, this quilt tells the story of Virginia’s slow move from segregated public schools (black and white fabrics), to the shameful era of Massive Resistance, to the vibrancy and welcoming integrated atmosphere of today (colorful fabrics). I scanned 3-hole punch notebook paper, scaled it down and printed on cotton fabric, and wrote the history lessons with colored pencils. The center building is my own children’s Louise Archer Elementary School, the last in Fairfax County to be desegregated, now with a wonderful mix of cultures and languages in the student body.

On the morning of September 11, 2001, hijackers crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon, destroying part of the outer ring. The National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial honors the 184 people killed in that act of terrorism, 125 inside the Pentagon and 59 passengers and crew on the jet. There are many elements to the Memorial. What is symbolized in my quilt, with a dashed pattern fabric, are the individual cantilevered benches oriented along the flight line. The benches are arranged by age of the associated person, directed toward the Pentagon or the approach of the jet.

I have also been to the other 9/11 memorials, in New York City and Shanksville, but the Pentagon Memorial’s design in my opinion is the most effective. I cry each time I visit, especially seeing the bench for the youngest victim, three-year-old Dana Falkenberg. I feel so bereft seeing how distant hers is from the other benches. Though it is in a busy city and steps away from the gigantic Pentagon, the Memorial allows quiet contemplation of a tragic day in U.S. history.