Getting Ready

By Marin Hanson
Curator of Exhibitions 

Yesterday, while all of us are in town for the IQSCM biennial symposium, the research team met to discuss our upcoming trip. We reviewed our research agenda, talking about the sites we would be visiting and the types of patchwork objects we expect to find. We also discussed practical issues, such as what to pack, what gifts to bring, and how to exchange business cards (a big deal in Asia!).

Although our free time will be limited, cultural tourism opportunities abound in Xi'an. In addition to the famous Terra Cotta Warriors, Xi'an is home to the Ban Po neolithic settlement and the most complete city wall that survives in China. If you haven't been to Xi'an before, here's the "Official Xi'an City Trailer," a slick YouTube video about this ancient city. Any suggestions for what we should go see?

We also discussed a few excellent resources on Chinese folk art and symbolism. Nancy Berliner's "Chinese Folk Art" and Patricia Bjaaland Welch's "Chinese Art" are books we'll be referring to regularly both during and after our trip.


Marin Hanson is the Curator of Exhibitions at the International Quilt Study Center & Museum at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She holds undergraduate degrees from Grinnell College and Northern Illinois University and earned her MA in museum studies and textile history with a quilt studies emphasis from UNL. She is currently pursuing doctoral research on cross-cultural quiltmaking practices, with particular emphasis on China and the United States.

A Whole New Language

By Cindy DeLong
UNL Graduate Student

Here we see a dragon motif worked into a quilt block.
Are those rams horns depicted in each of the corners?
What do they represent?

(IQSCM 2012.040.0007)

China – she is half way around the globe.

From where I live it’s a 19-hour trip. Yes in a mere 19 hours I can be in the hustle and bustle of Beijing, one of the world’s biggest and busiest cities. I’ve been to New York City, an American metropolis. Aside from the obvious language differences, these cities have much in common. With the global technology-based world we live in today, it’s easy to make the comparison. 

One thing that is markedly different, however, is the cultural history. 

In preparation for our upcoming research trip to China, I have been reading about Chinese history, art, and culture. One thing that stands out to me more than anything is the development of symbols (we might call them motifs) as a meaningful language in and of themselves. Historically, in some of the more isolated minority Chinese societies, these symbols were often used in clothing and other crafted objects and in absence of a formal written language, were a method of non-verbal communication.

We are familiar with the Chinese dragon motif, for example. But, why a dragon? What does it mean when a dragon motif is used on a robe? What are some of the meanings of Yin and Yang? How are they used? Have meanings changed over time?

The double coin motif and "quatrefoils" are seen often in
quilts from the collection. Why? Do they have
significant meaning?

(IQSCM 2012.040.0006)

The literature I have been reviewing delves into the rich centuries-long history of Chinese symbols, many of which are not understood. Their meanings have been lost through time and lack of a surviving written explanation. Fish, bats, tigers, pomegranates, and many other motifs represent ideas such as prosperity, good luck, protection, and fertility. The Chinese belief in magic and the many different political and religious influences have all contributed to the development of their symbol vocabulary.

Recently, I have been familiarizing myself with the IQSCM’s collection of Chinese quilts. Some, the more recently made ones, bear similarity to western-quilt styles, yet others are very different. There are quilts with animal, flora, fauna, and an array of other traditional Chinese motifs. Were these symbols used to convey a concept such as happiness or wealth?

I think I many leave China with many more unanswered than answered questions, and an even greater curiosity!


Cindy DeLong is working on a master's degree in textile history with an emphasis in quilt studies at UNL. She has a bachelor of sciences in home economics (clothing and textiles) and journalism from the University of Missouri. She has worked at the New England Quilt Museum as a curatorial intern and the International Quilt Study Center & Museum as a collections intern.

Expanding Our International Collection

By Marin Hanson
Curator of Exhibitions

One reason why this research trip to Xi’an is so exciting for us at IQSCM is that our collection currently does not have any pieces from northwest China (Xi’an is in Shaanxi Province, on the edge of the less populated, far western portion of China). But we do have many excellent examples of patchwork and quilting from other parts of the country.

One of our collection’s strengths is ethnic minority quilt covers from southwest China. Members of the Maonan, Buyi, Yao and other minority groups make applique and patchwork bedcoverings, of which we have many representatives, like this one from Guangxi Province.

Many southwestern Chinese ethnic groups also use patchwork, quilting, and applique to construct elaborate garments, as well as utilitarian objects like baby carriers and diaper pads.

One beautiful costume example is this quilted Miao jacket.

Ceremonial objects, like this rare and visually impressive Longpo Yi, or “Dragon Wife’s Robe” from the Yi people of Yunnan Province, are also sometimes made with patchwork.

The Longpo Yi is used during funeral processions and is worn by a female descendent of the recently deceased.

We are looking forward to learning about patchwork from a different part of China--Shaanxi Province--and to adding new examples to our collection.


Marin Hanson is the Curator of Exhibitions at the International Quilt Study Center & Museum at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She holds undergraduate degrees from Grinnell College and Northern Illinois University and earned her MA in museum studies and textile history with a quilt studies emphasis from UNL. She is currently pursuing doctoral research on cross-cultural quiltmaking practices, with particular emphasis on China and the United States.

A Sign From the Universe

By Marin Hanson
Curator of Exhibitions

When I was 12, my parents sent me to Chinese language summer camp. That’s right, a camp where you do all the normal camp things like singing songs and playing sports, only you do it all in Chinese. And I returned every summer to the northern Minnesota camp, run by the Concordia Language Villages, for the next 10 years.

When I went away to college, I decided to continue studying Chinese, completing a Chinese Studies minor and attending a semester abroad at Nanjing University. The year before I did my study abroad, however, the Concordia Language Villages offered their very first summer study trip to China – and I was one of the first to sign up. That was my first trip to China.

We studied Chinese language and culture for two weeks in Xi’an but we also did a lot of general tourism. In Beijing, we made the obligatory trip to the Great Wall. And it was there that I got my first taste of what would eventually, MANY years later, become a love of patchwork – fabrics sewn together in intricate patterns to make new, infinitely more interesting constructions.

Women were stationed all along the wall hawking their souvenirs, many of which were patchwork garments, accessories, and baby blankets. I bought as many as I thought I could pack in my luggage. I don’t know why I loved them so much – at the time, I couldn’t so much as even sew a button on a shirt (OK, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but not by much). But textiles like this patchwork jacket...

... are the main thing I purchased – on that trip, and every time I’ve returned to China since. Clearly, the universe was trying to tell me something because here I am, 20 years later, making a research trip to Xi’an specifically to study these types of textiles!


Marin Hanson is the Curator of Exhibitions at the International Quilt Study Center & Museum at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She holds undergraduate degrees from Grinnell College and Northern Illinois University and earned her MA in museum studies and textile history with a quilt studies emphasis from UNL. She is currently pursuing doctoral research on cross-cultural quiltmaking practices, with particular emphasis on China and the United States.

Love at First Sight

By Amanda Lensch
UNL Graduate Student

To all my quilt-loving, fabric-stashing, textile-historian friends,

Guess what? I am going to CHINA!! And not as simply a tourist, but as a researcher! How amazing is that!?

I get to go to China. To learn about their textiles. In person.   

Whoa.

I have been extremely fortunate thus far, and have had the opportunity to do some really amazing things over the years. This has included some international travel, but never to an Eastern country. I think I may be in for a bit of a culture shock – but in a good way! One of the reasons why I love to travel, and jump at it almost any chance I have, is that I get to experience something new. Whether that’s the scenery/countryside, entertainment/cultural activities, or the food – it’s always new and different and exciting! (I have to say what I am most nervous about is the authentic Chinese food… yikes.) But this trip will hold something even more special. I get to continue to pursue my passion of textiles in this foreign (to me) land. Who knows what we will find?!

But I can’t wait to find out!

One of the many reasons why the Quilt Studies program is so exceptional is it provides the opportunity to learn about cultures and their textile traditions from all over the world. There are pieces from Italy, France, Turkey, Korea, and many more in the museum’s collection. And sometimes they even let us travel to find these pieces!

Initially, I became interested in this trip because of a recent acquisition here at the International Quilt Study Center & Museum. Last year we procured a Dragon Wife’s Robe from Southwest China. The patchwork is made out of a variety of vivid silks, most of which are sewn into a pinwheel block and placed evenly on a dark navy ground. It is elegant and, quite simply, beautiful! I fell in love on sight!

Helping Exhibitions Assistant Jennifer Graham
build a mount for the robe.

Here we are carefully moving the robe to the mount for display.

(If you took a behind the scenes tour at the IQSCM during the annual American Quilt Study Group meeting last fall you would have seen this piece.) It made me curious about who wore it and why, and what other textiles are out there?

My first love was historic costume, so it’s not surprising that I fell in love with this piece as it combines my newer love of quilts and patchwork. The research trip to China presents an opportunity to find and learn more about pieces such as this. We will be going to a different part of China than where this robe was found, but that means that there may be different traditions and styles to uncover.  And new textiles to fall in love with!  

Great Wall here I come!

P.S. You should really follow along… I’m sure we will have some amazing/crazy/unbelievable stories to share!


Amanda is working on a master’s in textile history with an emphasis in quilt studies at UNL. She has a bachelor’s degree in apparel merchandising, design and production with an emphasis in museum studies and a minor in entrepreneurial studies from Iowa State University. She is a graduate assistant working in collections at the International Quilt Study Center & Museum and previously interned at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, Ky., and Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.

Upcoming Course Opportunity

We wanted to share an upcoming learning opportunity for University of Nebraska-Lincoln students. This summer, Curator of Exhibitions Marin Hanson will teach "Asian Patchwork and Quilting: Folk Art/Religious Art" (TMFD 490/890) June 24-28.

This one-credit course will introduce participants to various patchwork and quilting traditions from a range of Asian regions, including South Asia (India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh), East Asia (China, Japan, and Korea) and Central Asia. 

Students will have the opportunity to examine objects in the collections of the International Quilt Study Center & Museum that are from each of these regions and will learn about their significance, particularly as examples of folk art (in contrast to higher-status crafts) and religious art. 

The course will emphasize the search for continuities and differences between the patchwork and quilting arts of these distinct but contiguous regions.

Click here for more information about this course and how to register for it.

We hope we will see you in class this summer.

An Exploration in Patchwork

By Marin Hanson
IQSCM Curator of Exhibitions

An IQSCM team is going to China to study patchwork – but what does that mean, exactly?

Well that’s the exciting part, we sort of know what it’s about, but not exactly. Patchwork has been made all over China for centuries, but very little research has been done on it. Many people know about Chinese imperial and aristocratic textiles, such as dragon robes and intricate silk brocades, but the textiles of the common people, like patchwork, are less familiar.

Patchwork is definitely a tradition in the region our team is going to – Shaanxi Province, whose capital is Xi’an, the city near which the famous Terra Cotta Warriors were discovered and unearthed in the 1970s.

Here is a patchwork hanging embroidered and appliqued with a host of auspicious symbols – it is in the collection of our research partner – the Art Museum at Xi’an Jiaotong University (XJTU). Doesn’t the center look a lot like a Log Cabin–Pineapple variation?

We want to accomplish many things on our research trip:

• identify historic examples of patchwork by visiting several museum collections
• establish what kinds of patchwork are still being made today, especially for the tourist market
• solidify our relationship with XJTU Art Museum with the goal of returning in the near future to continue our research

Keep an eye on our blog to find out how we’re progressing!


Marin Hanson is the Curator of Exhibitions at the International Quilt Study Center & Museum at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She holds undergraduate degrees from Grinnell College and Northern Illinois University and earned her MA in museum studies and textile history with a quilt studies emphasis from UNL. She is currently pursuing doctoral research on cross-cultural quiltmaking practices, with particular emphasis on China and the United States.

Follow Us as We Explore Chinese Patchwork

Chinese Patchwork image credit: Xi'an Jiaotong University Art Museum

We take our mission seriously at the International Quilt Study Center & Museum.

As the world’s largest collection of publicly-owned quilts, our mission is to inspire an understanding of the cultural and artistic significance of quilts by collecting, preserving, studying, exhibiting and promoting discovery of quilts and quiltmaking traditions from many cultures, countries and time periods.

This May, we will support that mission by sending a team of four researchers and scholars to Xi’an, China. One of the oldest cities in China, Xi’an is the capital of Shaanxi Province.

While in Xi’an, our team will have the opportunity to conduct research and fieldwork to learn more about local patchwork and quilting traditions. Team members will also present a series of lectures on American folk art – specifically patchwork and quilts – at Xi’an Jiaotong University through the University of Nebraska’s new American Exchange Center.  Read more about the project here.

Our team members include Patricia Crews, IQSCM director; Marin Hanson, IQSCM curator of exhibitions; Cindy DeLong, graduate student; and Amanda Lensch, graduate student. You can read more about the team here.

The team leaves May 8, and we want to share our experience with you on this blog. In the weeks leading up to our trip, we will share some background information about this project along with some of our goals. While in China, team members will post regular updates sharing their experiences as they are happening.

This project is made possible by support from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s College of Education and Human Sciences International Seed Grant and the University of Nebraska’s American Exchange Center.

We are excited about the adventures that await us and are thrilled to share them with you.