May 13, 2014–January 8, 2017
Corning, New York
c. 1907
Pieced silk, faille, taffeta, and satin
60 x 72 1/2"
Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York
Museum purchase, 2012.1.1
Photo by Gavin Ashworth
Original Design Quilt
Some of the more dazzling silk quilts made at the turn of the twentieth century are the work of men in the tailoring trades, often emigrants from Germany or Eastern Europe. Strip constructions, such as the Log Cabin pattern, enabled the quiltmakers to utilize bits of silk that were left over from vests and other clothing items fashioned as part of their profession. Carl Klewicke was one such immigrant to Corning, New York. The quilt that he made in 1907 as a wedding gift for his daughter, Laura, received acclaim in more than one newspaper article, each describing it as “wonderful in many respects,” and containing 31,085 pieces.* Klewicke labored at this quilt for twenty years or so, but the story is even more extraordinary. As recounted in the March 18, 1879, edition of the Corning (NY) Journal: “On the evening of March 1st, an infant girl about three months old, was left on the door step at the house of Carl Klewicke. . . . The child was well dressed, and an extra pair of shoes was in the bundle of clothing left with it. Mr. and Mrs. Klewicke, having no children, adopted the foundling, and are already quite proud as well as happy in its possession.” It is this adopted daughter for whom the extraordinary quilt was made.
*This quilt first came to public notice through the American Folk Art Museum’s New York Quilt documentation project. The museum is indebted to Jacquelyn Oak of the Shelburne Museum in Vermont for sharing new information she discovered regarding the history of the quilt and its maker.
Stacy C. Hollander, “Original Design Quilt,” exhibition label for Self-Taught Genius: Treasures from the American Folk Art Museum. Stacy C. Hollander and Valérie Rousseau, curators. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2014.
Self–Taught Genius: Treasures from the American Folk Art Museum and its national tour are made possible by generous funding from the Henry Luce Foundation, as part of its 75th anniversary initiative.
