Celebrating the 2012 gift of 350 American quilts from local collectors Pat and Tom Nickols, this installation features Log Cabin quilts. A Log Cabin quilt is formed in squares known as blocks, each with a central small square surrounded by bars or logs. Quilts may contain over 100 blocks, each pieced by hand in most cases. Many of these quilts include secondary patterns or variations of the Log Cabin such as Sunshine and Shadows, Barn Raising and Courthouse Steps. The immense versatility of the Log Cabin pattern has made it popular with quilters in America since the mid-nineteenth century.
Over the last thirty years, Pat Nickols amassed a wondrous collection of mostly American quilts; a quilt and fabric historian, her knowledge of this important genre of American folk art is boundless. The collection is comprised of traditional quilts made from the early 1800s to the 1950s, gathered from many parts of the United States. It includes excellent examples of many types of quilts including Log Cabin, Charm, String and Signature quilts, and quilts made with feed, flour and sugar sacks.
In correlation with this exhibition, the museum hosted: “Quilts from the Pat L. Nickols Collection” Lunchtime Lecture on April 25, 2014
“Quilt Viewing and Discussion,” an intimate look at the Pat L. Nickols American Quilt Collection on May 7, 2014