Breathtaking Quilts in The Boston Museum of Fine Arts- GO!

http://www.mfa.org/exhibitions/quilts-and-color



Today my great niece and I went to the Boston Museum- NOT to see the quilts.

We were passing  by the exhibits door and we decided to go in. The show blew the top of my head off. Color and design, design and color for the pure joy of it. Unpretentious, no political motives, no underlying messages, but works of love done from the most humble of materials and hands. Rumpelstiltskin's dream realized, the spinning of simple materials into pure gold. The site has a slide show but you really must see the show in person if you can at all.

The sophistication of color and design put to shame the museum's op-art pictures ( including a Bridget Riley) placed next to some of the quilts. The quilts were so exuberant, so unabashed and so joyful. One exquisite quilt was done in 1879, by an 81 year old woman for her daughter. If that was not art what is?

If anything, this showed me what the heart of art is- it is not in the million dollar payoffs, nor the gallery shows, nor the adulation or the reviews in the New York Times. This was art in its purest form.

For any of you lucky enough to see this show -run- it will give you the heart to go on even if it is in a humble way- a few hours here and there, stolen from a busy life or working away quietly and unsung on something that brings you happiness.

This picture does not do this quilt justice- nor in fact do any of these representations.  The colors vibrate like lightening from the walls.  This quilt was quite unusual as to expensiveness the materials used- there was a subtle play between the silks,satins and velvets used. Tiny floral hand embroidery embellished each section.
This labor of love was done in 1879 by an 81 year old woman for her daughter.