Fabric of a nation : American quilt stories / Pamela A. Parmal, Jennifer M. Swope, Lauren D. Whitley ; with a preface by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich.

Published in conjunction with the exhibition of the same title organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Director's foreword -- Preface / Laurel Thatcher Ulrich -- The story of American quilts -- Ships & hands -- Canals & cotton gins -- Railroads & power looms -- Streetcars & sewing machines -- Automobiles & advertising -- Rockets & gallery walls.

A mother stitches a few lines of prayer into a bedcover for her son serving in the Union army during the Civil War. A formerly enslaved African American woman creates a quilt populated by Biblical figures alongside celestial events. A quilted Lady Liberty, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln mark the resignation of Richard Nixon. These are just a few of the diverse and sometimes hidden stories of the American experience told by quilts and bedcovers from the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Spanning more than 400 years, the 58 works of textile art in this book express the personal narratives of their makers and owners and connect to broader stories of global trade, immigration, industry, marginalization, and territorial and cultural expansion. Exhibition: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA (09.05.2021 - 06.02.2022).

Published in conjunction with the exhibition of the same title organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.