Parallel Lines: Quilts and the American Landscape explores the parallel processes of quilt-making within the American home and place-making on the American landscape. Featuring nineteenth- and twentieth-century American quilts drawn from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection, the exhibit examines some of the most familiar quilt forms – such as nine-patch squares, eight-pointed stars, and “log cabin” blocks with cloth strips surrounding a central square “hearth”– as the basis for individual creativity and innovative design. Visitors will be encouraged to view American quilts through a new lens, by comparing these geometric motifs and strong linear compositions to the boundaries, pathways, and structures of the built environment.

This exhibition is curated by Dr. Marina Moskowitz, Professor of Design Studies and the Lynn and Gary Mecklenburg Chair in Textiles, Material Culture & Design. This exhibition and its related programs are made possible with support from the Anonymous Fund and many generous donors and partners who share the vision of the Nancy M. Bruce Center for Design and Material Culture. The center creates meaningful opportunities for students, faculty, and the broader community to engage with textiles, design, and material culture.