On Sunday, September 27, a community quilt - the culmination of The American Quilt: Weaving the District's Future, an American Masterpieces project sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, was unveiled at The Textile Museum.  The program aimed to draw attention to the importance of quilting as a treasured American masterpiece and educate individuals on how the quilting tradition serves as a way of documenting history and examining social circumstance.

This 160-square moveable quilt is the result of several free workshops held throughout the District between September 9 - 19, 2009. The workshops were led by Pat Autenrieth, a local quilter, mixed media artist, and associate professor at the Corcoran College of Art + Design in Washington, DC. Professional quilters along with adults and children who had never sewn before created individual squares, which are hung in order to allow the public to move the squares as they see fit.

Individually, the quilt squares represent the unique visions of the creators. Together, they comprise a quilt that expresses our community heritage. Museum visitors and workshop participants alike are encouraged to rearrange the quilt squares, creating an ever-changing design that embraces diversity and cooperation.

The project also involved an innovative web site, www.theamericanquilt2009.com, where people around the world could upload their designs for quilt squares using any computer program, or by scanning their drawings. The top five quilt designs are now part of the quilt on display at The Textile Museum.

The quilt will be on view at The Textile Museum from September 27 through October 4 and will then be added to the DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities’ Art Bank Collection. To plan your visit to The Textile Museum, click here.