Quiltmakers of Gee's Bend

This is a really AWESOME film!!!! It airs on PBS. I think maybe it won an Emmy in 2005. How many other broadcasters these days actually bother to show or make films about poor Southern African-American and their lives and importance to American history. This filmmaker obviously had excellent access and entered a world most Americans will never see. It's incredible to see how these women's lives changed because the museums finally decided their work is art. Actually this was not the film accompanying the museum tour. This one's totally different. I think maybe that other reviewer commented on the wrong film. Boring? No way. Man this is real documentary film-making that makes a difference--not just some non-reality TV show.

I showed this DVD to my mostly upper middle class high school art students. As soon as they settled in and began to watch, the room was as quiet as an empty cave. We were all enamored by the humble nature of these women and the stories they had to tell. Out of necessity was created things of beauty that are now called pieces of art. From rags of jeans and shirts bold images were created that capture the spirit of these women and their lives. My students came away with "new eyes" and a a deeper understanding of what is it like to be financially poor, highly spiritual, deeply thankful and amazingly strong. I recommend this video to anyone who needs to seethe creative process of art-making in its most authentic way.