Jonathan Holstein recalled asking when he first saw this quilt, “Who would make such a thing to cover a bed?” He found it “visually disturbing” in contrast to typical notions of quilts as comforting and soothing. He wondered what the quiltmakers’ friends and family thought of it (Abstract Design, 168). Quilts like this prompted Holstein, and likely countless others who saw similar pieces exhibited during the 1970s, to question what he knew about quilts and design. Its red and white jagged edges certainly qualified it as abstract, and it no doubt attracted attention when showcased on the walls of the Whitney.

Pattern: 
Sawtooth
Maker: 
Maker unknown
Circa
1890
1910
Possibly made in
Massachusetts
United States
89.5
76
IQM, Jonathan Holstein/Gail van der Hoof Collection
2003.003.0024