Oneof the quiltmakers of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, Irene Williams reveals a distinctive individual style in quilts that stretch the boundaries of traditional patterns and compositions. In this quilt she was inspired by the endless design possibilities of the “Housetop” pattern, which consists of squares within squares, and the “Postage Stamp” pattern, composed of small squares.

“When I got married, I started making quilts. I just put stuff together. I didn’t do the best I could, because in them years I didn’t have nothing but what little we got to make quilts and things out of.”

— Irene Williams