Harriet Powers

Harriet Powers (American, 1837-1910)

Born into slavery in rural Georgia, Powers utilized cotton appliqué to create narrative quilts. A literate woman, her colorful simplified forms illustrate stories drawn from the bible, American history, and astronomy. Her quilts were exhibited during her lifetime, including at the Clarke County Cotton Fair (1886) and the Cotton States Exhibition, Atlanta (1895), and praised in local papers. While only two of her quilts are extant, Powers remains an important figure in the history of early African American quilting.

Important Source Material:

Hicks, Kyra E. This I Accomplish: Harriet Powers’ Bible Quilt and Other Pieces. [S.l.]: Black Threads Press, 2009.

NHS