Book Reviews

Blue: The History of a Color

Uncommon Threads

Threading the Generations

Martha Ann's Quilt for Queen Victoria

In Praise of the Needlewoman

BOOK REVIEWS by Patricia Cummings

BLUE: The History of a Color, a book by Michel Pastoureau (Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2001) features part of the Wilton Diptych, circa 1395, on its dust jacket which is a view of the Virgin Mary, in blue, surrounded by angel attendants, also dressed in blue. This book is an overview of the evolution of the color blue, as it has been interpreted and re-interpreted over the ages. Originally written in the French language, the hard bound book is illustrated with beautiful color plates.

The author traces the ongoing responses to the once "hot" color that is now considered "icy cool." This is a reminder that all art (and color) is in the eye of the beholder. He reveals that the Greeks abhored the color, while later on in medieval Europe, blue came to be embraced as the color associated with the Virgin Mary, and it became an accepted color for church decoration. Follow the book through its political intrigues and public preferences for a deep, insightful look at a color most of us now take for granted.

Uncommon Threads: Ohio's Art Quilt Revolution by Gayle A. Pritchard is a look at the history of the art quilt movement in the late twentieth century, in the state of Ohio. Published by Ohio University Press in 2006, photos of art quilts create an exuberant overall image of the works of many people who have been instrumental in establish Art Quilts as a separate and relatively recent phenomena in the quilting world. The works of such folks as David Walker, Nancy Crow, Susan Shie, and many lesser known artists are featured in vibrant color photos, and ample descriptions and interviews are included.

Threading the Generations: A Mississippi Family's Quilt Legacy by Mary Elizabeth Johnson and Carol Vickers (University Press of Mississippi Jackson, 2005), portrays the quilt activities of four generations of the Shaifer family of Port Gibson, Mississippi. The quilts served as points of connection between generations and are representative of many types and styles of quilts, and "life as it was lived by thousands of southerners during the Civil War and Reconstruction." This hard cover book's story begins in 1813 and continues to the present. Threading the Generations offers the reader a glimpse of no less than seventy-five photos of family quilts.

Martha Ann's Quilt for Queen Victoria, by Kyra E. Hicks and illustrated by Lee Edward Födi, is a delightful children's story that is based in reality. The protagonist, Martha Ann, hoped to thank Queen Elizabeth for sending the Navy to protect the coast of Liberia against slave catchers. So, she decides to make a quilt for the Queen. Martha Ann Ricks saved money for fifty years in order to travel to England to meet the Queen. This book will be enjoyed by people of all ages, and it is extremely refreshing that it is a true story.

In Praise of the Needlewoman: Embroiderers, Knitters, Lacemakers, and Weavers in Art by Gail Carolyn Sirna, with a foreword by Shay Pendray, is a collection of art pieces that illustrating the act of a woman engaging in some type of needlework. The full page photos of paintings, images gathered from important collections throughout the world, are pleasant tributes to needleworkers and show how they have been depicted in Art, over time. This exquisite book is a great coffee table addition, but for those who read the very elucidating text, there is much more to this book than just pretty pictures.

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