QUILT INDEX RECORD

31-27-209

Who documented this quilt?

South Africa Quilt History Project; Conscience of the Human Spirit: The Life of Nelson Mandela; The Black Diaspora Quilt History Project

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

South Africa Quilt History Project

South Africa Quilt History Project Number:

CHSLM342

Person filling out this form is:

Quiltmaker

When was the form filled out?

2014

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Inspirations

How wide is the quilt?

30"

How long is the quilt?

30"

Shape of edge:

Straight

Predominate colors:

Blue; Red; White

Overall condition:

Excellent/like new

Time period:

2000-2025

When was the quilt finished?

May 2014

Describe the quilt's layout:

Nontraditional or art

Subject of the quilt:

Nelson Mandela

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Describe the fibers or fabrics in the quilt top:

South African Cotton, African Sky Fabrics

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Machine Piecing

How is the binding made?

Separate binding applied

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Grid/crosshatch

Quilt top made by:

Krog, Jill

Quilted by:

Krog, Jill

Where the quilt was made, city:

Howick

Where the quilt was made, province:

Kwa-Zulu Natal

Where the quilt was made, country:

South Africa

Quilt is presently used as:

Artwork/wall hanging

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

Consceince of the Human Spirit: The Life of Nelson Mandela; International Quilt Conference Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa, July 2014

Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:

MacDowell, Marsha; Mazloomi, Carolyn. Conscience of the Human Spirit: The Life of Nelson Mandela. Michigan State University Museum, East Lansing, 2014; page 68.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's name:

Jill Krog

Quilt owner's city:

Howick

Quilt owner's province:

Kwa-Zulu Natal

Quilt owner's country:

South Africa

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

South African

Quiltmaker's city:

Howick

Quiltmaker's province:

Kwa-Zulu Natal

Quiltmaker's country:

South Africa

Description of quilt:

Jill Krog
Inspirations
Howick, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa | Cotton, African Sky fabrics; machine pieced

I believe Mandela’s greatest legacy lies in the powerful statements he made. From his emotional speech at the opening of the trial that would see him jailed for 27 years to the pleas for South Africans to come together when he became South Africa’s first democratic president, words were his greatest weapon.

I never had the privilege of meeting Mandela personally. It is through my son Halden’s eyes that I knew Mandela. Halden, a newspaper photographer, met Mandela on several occasions. Over the years they developed such a special relationship that Halden photographed the Mandela family numerous times in a personal capacity. Halden would tell me of Madiba’s compassion, sincerity, honesty and humility; he explained to me that one always left Mandela’s company feeling as if one were a better, more virtuous person.

I have used Halden’s photographs, including some never before published, and some of Madiba’s words in this quilt. Just as the quilter takes patches of material — new and old — to create beauty, so Mandela created a new social fabric with a patchwork of South Africans.

Essay:

See files

Who photographed this quilt?

Dion Cuyler

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

The copyright belongs to the owner/artist.