Photo credit: © Drunell Levinson. All rights reserved.
Accession Number: C.2007.8.59
Dimensions: 6 ft X 3 ft X 0.5 in
Dimensions (Metric): 15.24 cm X 7.62 cm X 1.27 cm
Credit Line: Gift of Drunell Levinson and of the contributors to the September 11 Quilts Memorial Exhibition
A Time to Mourn
Description
Quilt titled A Time to Mourn created by Marilyn Pilkey and made with fabric, batting, and thread. This quilt is very dark, using mainly black fabric. A woman wearing black clothing and a shawl wrapped around her head appears to have a sorrowful look on her face. The batting in the quilt is thicker so the woman is three dimensional. "A Time to Mourn" is written in the lower right corner. Some of the fabric is delicate and antique.
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.