"Piano Keys" From The Avis C. Robinson Collection

The quilt pictured is from the exhibit “African-American Quilts”, courtesy of the collections of Sandra McPherson and Avis C. Robinson, at The Nelson Art Gallery at Hart Hall on the University of California Davis campus.

This quilt in particular stood out amongst the rest due to its vivid and asymmetrical coloring. Upon taking in the whole, it appears as a smooth flat surface of vertically arranged color. This rhythm of vertical strips of cloth creates a paneling effect that visually smoothes out the tactile texture of the wrinkly cloth. Only upon closer inspection of the parts that assemble the whole can the real texture of the cloth and the properties of the different dyes in the cotton be seen.

The vertical lines, which are strips of dyed cotton, create the rhythm of the quilt. The focal point lies slightly to the right of the vertical axis. The red acts as a buffer between the dark and the light and aides in the transition between the two. The red simultaneously reverberates to either side in different hues and “bleeds” down the quilt, drawing the eye all around the piece. The bottom of the quilt is light and airy with varying hues of yellow and other complimentary colors. The quilt seems predominantly yellow, which it is, but it is balanced by the darkness that settles above it in the shades of black and various blues. The asymmetrical vertical coloring is well balanced due to the visual weight garnered by the contrasting colors. The darker colors are heavier and draw the eye more while the yellows are very light and would be overpowered if the colors were equally distributed throughout the quilt. The heavy colors draw the eye to the top where they find the focal point of the medial red that then draws the eyes down the rest of the quilt. A very colorful and emotional journey, psychologically speaking.

The quilt is quite alluring and intriguing. It is a well balanced vision of color and rhythm that is not just a functionally warm quilt, but a visually warm presentation of design and craft.