Melrose Quilt

Clementine Hunter, Melrose Quilt, ca. 1960, fabric, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Barbara Coffey Quilt Endowment, 2014.5
Clementine Hunter, Melrose Quilt, ca. 1960, fabric, 7360 in. (185.4152.4 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Barbara Coffey Quilt Endowment, 2014.5

Artwork Details

Title
Melrose Quilt
Date
ca. 1960
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
7360 in. (185.4152.4 cm)
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Barbara Coffey Quilt Endowment
Mediums Description
fabric
Classifications
Subjects
  • Architecture Exterior — domestic — house
Object Number
2014.5

Artwork Description

Clementine Hunter's bold color choices harmonize with the shapes of the landscape. Her quilts, like her paintings, illustrate everyday stories she felt historians overlooked--especially those of Black workers in the South. Melrose Quilt depicts buildings at the Melrose plantation in Natchitoches Parish, in Central Louisiana, where Hunter and her family moved to work as sharecroppers. She represents the Big House in the center, Yucca House above, and African House at bottom right, where in 1955 Hunter painted a mural of plantation life.
At the plantation, Hunter worked first as a field hand and later as a cook and housekeeper. When the owner of Melrose died, his wife made the plantation a retreat for visiting artists. Hunter's exposure to artists there and her resourcefulness with leftover paints led to the beginning of her artistic practice.

Works by this artist (6 items)

Mark di Suvero, Untitled, 1967, welded steel and stainless steel, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Edith S. and Arthur J. Levin, 2005.5.20A-B
Untitled
Date1967
welded steel and stainless steel
On view
Mark di Suvero, Preliminary Maquette for Motu Viget, 1974, welded steel, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, Art-in-Architecture Program, 1979.159.49, © 1974, Mark di Suvero
Preliminary Maquette for Motu Viget
Date1974
welded steel
On view
Mark di Suvero, Revised Maquette for Motu Viget, 1976, welded steel, rubber, nylon, photograph on plywood base, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, Art-in-Architecture Program, 1979.159.6
Revised Maquette for Motu Viget
Date1976
welded steel, rubber, nylon, photograph on plywood base
Not on view

Exhibitions

Media - 2019.15 - SAAM-2019.15_1 - 137377
Subversive, Skilled, Sublime: Fiber Art by Women
May 31, 2024January 5, 2025
The artists in Subversive, Skilled, Sublime: Fiber Art by Women mastered and subverted the everyday materials of cotton, felt, and wool to create deeply personal artworks.

More Artworks from the Collection

Robert Hudson, Maquette for Tlingit, 1979, welded steel, assembled and painted, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, 1980.49.18
Maquette for Tlingit
Date1979
welded steel, assembled and painted
Not on view
Barbara Neijna, Maquette for Right Turn on White, 1978, cut and bent stainless steel on fiberboard base, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, Art-in-Architecture Program, 1979.159.47
Maquette for Right Turn on White
Date1978
cut and bent stainless steel on fiberboard base
Not on view
William Goodman, Maquette for Solirio, 1973-1974, hammered, welded and painted steel, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, Art-in-Architecture Program, 1979.159.9
Maquette for Solirio
Date1973-1974
hammered, welded and painted steel
Not on view
Duayne Hatchett, Maquette for Equilateral Six, 1975, welded and painted aluminum on steel base, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, Art-in-Architecture Program, 1979.159.11
Maquette for Equilateral Six
Date1975
welded and painted aluminum on steel base
Not on view