American Studies Quilting Unit Weaves Art, Gender, and Tradition

In the Upper School’s PolyEnriched American Studies course, led by Laura Marion and Kristen Osborne-Bartucca, a recent unit brought history to life—thread by thread. Inspired by feminist artist Judy Chicago’s iconic installation The Dinner Party, students explored the deep and often overlooked significance of “women’s work” through an immersive quilting project that blended historical inquiry, literature, and hands-on creativity.

Chicago’s work, a triangular table with elaborate place settings honoring influential women such as Sojourner Truth, Harriet Jacobs, and Emily Dickinson, became the unit’s launch point. Thousands of additional women’s names inscribed on the floor of the installation underscored the widespread, often invisible labor of women throughout history. 

From these discussions emerged a broader theme: the domestic arts as both practical and expressive forms of labor. Laura shared a personal story about sewing a quilt for a friend’s wedding, sparking the idea to bring quilting into the classroom. “The idea is what it means to do women's work,” she explained, “and then what it means when work is both for women and it has utility but also creativity.”

To deepen their understanding, students read texts like Alice Walker’s In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens and Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper, which reflect on women’s need for creative expression in confined domestic spaces. Kristen also gave a lecture on the history of needlework and colonial women’s samplers—an artistic tradition that predated the class’s former project of placemat-making and evolved into this year’s collaborative quilt.

“I gave a lecture on the history of Black women in quilting because it has shown up in so many of the texts that we read,” Kristen said. “I like to make sure that our activities are supported by history and by texts—that they’re not just set in a vacuum.”

The project was further enriched by Upper School Attendance Coordinator and 10th Grade Advisor Catharine Stebbins, who made a special appearance in the class. With her 11 sewing machines in tow, Catharine taught students the basics of machine sewing using cloth samples. Each student contributed a unique square to the class quilt.

The unit also offered students the chance to reflect on the intergenerational legacy of quilting. Several recalled family members who practiced the art, forming a connection between their classroom work and their heritage.

“It was both exciting and rewarding to intertwine a valuable and historic form of American art with our own academic study of history,” said Maddie D. ’26. “Creating the quilt together not only helped me learn about the creative aspects of sewing, especially as someone with little prior experience, but it also served as the most effective way to truly immerse ourselves in the history we learned about.”

Maddie reflected on the power of experiential learning: “I enjoy learning about history through various traditional media... However, truly understanding the experiences of these women by creating a physical hallmark of their history was an unrivaled experience.”