Source: Barbara Gatewood, bgatewd@k-state.edu

Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010

PRESENTATION ON AMERICAN QUILTS IN MODERN AGE SEPT. 10 AT K-STATE

MANHATTAN -- Patricia Crews, director of the International Quilt Study Center and Museum at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, will discuss the history of American quilts Friday, Sept. 10, at Kansas State University.

Crews will present "American Quilts in the Modern Age, 1880-1940" at 4:30 p.m. in All Faiths Chapel. Her talk will look at how Americans responded to rapid industrialization, urbanization and immigration as reflected by quilt designs and techniques.

The presentation will be followed by a reception at K-State's Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art; both are the closing events for the Beach Museum's current exhibition, "Pieces of Time: Quilts from the K-State Historic Costume and Textile Museum." The events are free and open to the public. They are co-hosted by the Friends of the K-State Historic Costume and Textile Museum and K-State's department of apparel, textiles and interior design. The quilt exhibition closes Sunday, Sept. 12.

With two quilting guilds that have memberships of more than 200 people, quilting has long been popular in the Manhattan community, according to Carole Chelz, president of the Friends of the K-State Historic Costume and Textile Museum, and the past president of the Friends of the Beach Museum of Art.

"Dr. Crews is an internationally-known quilt expert, educator and author, and we are pleased she'll present the closing lecture for the quilt exhibition at the Beach Museum," Chelz said.

Crews has been a member of the University of Nebraska faculty since 1984, joining the school right after she earned her doctorate in apparel, textiles and interior design from K-State. She has won several awards for her teaching and research, including the Smithsonian's 1993 Frost Prize for Distinguished Scholarship in American Crafts for her book "Nebraska Quilts and Quiltmakers." She also is the author of three other major books on quilting: "American Quilts in the Modern Age," "Wild by Design: Two Hundred Years of Innovation and Artistry in American Quilts" and the "Flowering of Quilts." Crews was named a Willa Cather Professor for Outstanding Scholarship in 2003.

The Friends of the K-State Historic Costume and Textile Museum organization was organized in 2003 to support the preservation, exhibition and use of the department of apparel, textiles and interior design's extensive teaching-research collection. For more information about the Crews presentation or joining the friends' organization, contact the department office at 785-532-6993.

Along with the Crews presentation, another special event will highlight the quilt exhibition at the Beach Museum. The "Pieces of Time Quilt Design" Open House will be 2-3:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 29, at the museum. The Konza Prairie Quilters Guild and Prairie Star Quilt Guild will offer hands-on activities, suitable for the whole family. Participants can experiment with quilt patterns, try hand quilting, and view a wide variety of contemporary quilts produced by local artists. Refreshments will be provided. The open house is free and no reservations are required. The event is funded by a grant from the Kansas Arts Commission.

More information on the quilt exhibition is available by contacting the Beach Museum at 785-532-7718 or online at http://beach.k-state.edu.