Quilt Arts of South Africa

Marsha MacDowell is Professor of Art, Art History, and Design at Michigan State University, Curator at the Michigan State University Museum, and Director of the Quilt Index (www.quiltindex.org). She has authored many publications on traditional material culture and quiltmaking, including Quilts and Health.

Preface Acknowledgments The Border: Piecing Together a History of Quilts and Related Textiles in South Africa, by Marsha MacDowell 1. Traditional bedding and blanket-cloaks of the indigenous people of South Africa, by Menan du Plessis 2. South African Kappies, by Vicky Heunis 3. The Heritage Quilt: The Anglo-Boer War Women's History Quilt, by Vicky Heunis 4. The Boer War Quilt: Discovering History Through Studying a Textile, by Michael Walwyn 5. Isishweshwe: A Blueprint Fabric in Southern Africa, by Juliette Leeb-du Toit 6. Potchefstroom: A Regional Center of South African Quilt History, by Miems Lamprecht 7. The South African Quilters' Guild, by Elsa Brits 8. Fibreworks: A South African Textile Artist Organization, by Jeanette Gilks 9. Zamani Quilters of Soweto, by Marsha MacDowell 10. A Lone Star in Africa, by Dawn Pavitt 11. The Empowering Stitch, by Sandra Kriel 12. Amazwi Abesifazane-Voices of Women: A Textile History Collection, by Coral Bijoux 13. South Africa, AIDS, and Quilts, by Marsha MacDowell 14. The Keiskamma Guernica, by Brenda Schmahmann 15. The Tapestries of the Bushman Heritage Museum, Nieu Bethesda, by Jeni Couzyn and artists from the Bushman Heritage Museum, Nieu Bethesda 16. Defining a South African Quilt Aesthetic, by Marsha MacDowell 17. Common Ground, Building Bridges: The Women of Color Quilters Network and South African Quilt Artists, by Marsha MacDowell, Carolyn Mazloomi, and Patricia Turner 18. The Quilt Index: South African Quilt History, Preservation, and Access, by Marsha MacDowell Bibliography Notes on Contributors Index

"An engaging rediscovery of a key art form and practice, much of which is shrouded in, and grounded in, South Africa's political background. This is another way of rewriting history through the art practices of primarily women, in this case."-Kate Wells, author of Fabric Dyeing and Printing "This is a well-researched publication that innovatively focuses on different areas of South African history through quilt and textile art produced by local artists. A great read and a must-have for one's book collection."-Nelisiwe Mkhize, Director, William Humphreys Art Gallery "Already an eminent scholar of quilting and quilt making in several regional and ethnic communities in the United States, Dr. Marsha MacDowell has assembled a groundbreaking volume that offers never-before-seen information and perspectives about the quilt-making history, traditions, aesthetics, cultures, and artists of South Africa. Readers will find insights about the diversity and richness of South African quilting practices written by an international group of multidisciplinary scholars. As an artist scholar, it is a volume to which I will return many times."-Diana Baird N'Diaye, Creative Director, African American Craft Alliance