Photo credit: © Drunell Levinson. All rights reserved.
Accession Number: C.2007.8.33
Dimensions: 6 ft X 3 ft X 0.25 in
Dimensions (Metric): 15.24 cm X 7.62 cm X 0.635 cm
Credit Line: Gift of Drunell Levinson and of the contributors to the September 11 Quilts Memorial Exhibition
Lower Manhattan, 9/11/01
Description
Quilt titled Lower Manhattan, 9/11/01, created by Carol Chave and made with fabric, batting, and thread. This patchwork quilt includes fabric resembling a lower Manhattan skyline. The patch in the center has red fabric breaking the skyline. At the bottom of the quilt are two strips of blue fabric. At the top are two horizontal stripes.
Historical Notes
Inspired by the AIDS Memorial Quilt, New York City–based arts educator Drunell Levinson conceived a September 11 Quilts Memorial that would bring together the work of artists from around the world. Drawing upon her academic research into mourning customs and her expertise as a quilter and fabric artist, Levinson issued a call for quilts on a website she created for the project. She offered thematic guidelines and requested a uniform size but left the choice of material, style, and subject to each quilter. Within the first year after 9/11, she had received 94 quilts. Over the next two years, the quilts—many using the Twin Towers as a focal point—were displayed throughout the United States and in Japan.