Dance, song and heirlooms come together at the quilt exhibition in Tallahassee
Many of us remember a time long ago when we felt safe. Loved unconditionally. Protected by someone older and wiser. Maybe that person was an old aunt. Maybe the grandmother who knew many things and shared them with you as you grew up.
That feeling of family and, one might say, love, is experienced when walking through the exhibit “The Quilts of Mrs. Gussie Beatrice Arnold Hill” at the Museum of Fine Arts (MoFA) on the campus of Florida State University. The exhibit, which runs from June 13 to December 14, is an example of how art can speak directly to the viewer.
The exhibit consists of 22 brightly lit, hand-crafted quilts from the family collection of Professor Anjali Austin, Director of the FSU School of Dance. It not only dazzles the eye with its color and originality, but also allows the viewer to become part of an experience.
Scattered among the double-bed size quilts are nearly life-size photographs of the creator of these heirlooms, Mrs. Gussie Beatrice Arnold Hill, and her extended family – ten siblings on her side of the family and ten on her husband’s side.
In a sepia-toned print, we see the petite Anjali Austin kneeling before the woman she called “Granny-Mommy,” surrounded by serious-looking adults who knew what hard work and family continuity meant.
“The ancestors speak”
The chests of carefully folded quilts (some worn, others perfectly preserved) that Anjali kept after her grandmother died became a source of ongoing inspiration and wisdom for her. It’s the kind of relationship that Austin says she feels “energy emanating from.”
And she wants these quilts to tell her story and let “the ancestors speak.”
As Professor Austin leads a tour of the exhibition, which occupies the entire ground floor of the MoFA building, visitors will find a handy table with source books containing information about quilts, as well as coloring books for children to color in the patterns featured in the exhibition.
And in the background you can hear something else: the deep hum of a woman’s voice singing quietly to herself.
Later, the voice switches to a softly sung spiritual, again – disembodied – something from another time. It’s not hard to imagine a room with a woman or two, poking their needles in and out of squares of fabric, thinking their own thoughts – thoughts that come from the ’30s and ’40s, when living in a Southern town meant keeping the family together was good. A time to do the work of your hands and give it to those you love – be it canned peaches or a warm blanket.
Baking and ballet
Austin says her grandmother gave her something else.
“For a few years, our fifth-generation family moved from Tallahassee to San Francisco – probably to find better work.” Her memories of spending time at her grandmother’s side include learning to sew, getting baking tips and watching Gussie Hill in the laundry room doing laundry.
But that was only part of Austin’s education. The two of them sat in front of the radio and listened to opera, and young Anjali learned the word ballet. This word, so foreign to many in her world at the time, became the inspiration for her life.
At age 13, Austin returned to Tallahassee and learned to dance, joining the Tallahassee Civic Ballet and then studying with Arthur Mitchell, principal dancer of the New York City Ballet, who invited Austin to join his Dance Theatre of Harlem.
Secrets in the Quilts
While Austin was studying at Goddard College and pursuing a degree in dance, she saw Gussie Hill’s quilt box again.
Over the years since, Austin has touched them, laid on them, and listened to the voices that seem to sing stories to her that she now wants to share. There are some secrets hidden within the quilts that she thinks others would like to know.
“Many people believe that the patterns on these handmade quilts contain ancient codes that slaves used to signal when it was time to leave on the Underground Railroad.” Some of the flying geese patterns can be seen on Gussie Hill quilts and may have said, “Go now!”
While this is not Austin’s first time giving quilts a starring role, it may be his most comprehensive exploration of their significance to date.
In 2013, Austin’s solo dance and spoken word piece “Threads” was presented at the WJB Gallery in the William Johnston Building on the FSU campus.
In 2023, there was a pop-up show of the quilts at MoFA, with Austin’s dance performance titled “Walk Among Them” referencing the quilts on display.
Dance performance
And now, as part of this exhibition, Austin will perform “Live Oak” on October 3 at MoFA, a spoken, danced and sung offering that reflects the dynamic power of the memories that may be hidden in the quilts.
And what does Austin think her grandmother Gussie would think of the panorama of colors and embroidery that lay silently on beds and in chests all her life?
“I think she would be proud,” Austin says quietly – and looks up into the silent but warm face of the woman who has opened up a new horizon for her granddaughter and keeps it alive.
When you go
Current exhibition: “The Quilts of Mrs. Gussie Beatrice Arnold Hill”
When: 13 June – 14 December: Opening hours: Wednesday – Friday 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Thursday until 8 p.m.
Where: MoFA, 530 W. Call St.; free and open to the public
Special dance performance by “Live Oak” with Anjali Austin
When: October 3 (time to be announced)
Where: MoFA, 530 W. Call St.
Tickets: mofa.fsu.edu
Guest contributor Marina Brown is the author of four Gold Medal-winning novels and short story collections, a writer for the Tallahassee Democrat and Tallahassee Magazine, a former soloist with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, an award-winning painter, cellist, nurse, ocean sailor, and traveler.
