Gee’s Bend Quilters • Panel Discussion • 2024

“Heritage: Southern Vernacular” opened last week with a panel hosted by guest curator Paul Barrett, featuring Gee’s Bend quilters Loretta Pettway Bennett, Claudia Pettway Charley, and Marlene Bennett Jones.

The panelists discussed the history, legacy, and future of the Gee’s Bend community—as well their connection to the Museum's recently released music collection and online experience "From Where I Stand: The Black Experience in Country Music." They took questions from a full audience in the Ford Theater. A quilting demonstration by Loretta Pettway Bennett, Marlene Bennett Jones, Cathy Mooney, Stella Pettway, Joe Ann Pettway, and Claudia Pettway Charley took place the next day.

Learn more about Gee’s Bend quilters and work from other Black vernacular artists from Alabama featured in the exhibit, including sculptures by Richard Dial, and paintings and works on paper by Thornton Dial, Charlie Lucas, and Mose Tolliver, when you visit “Heritage: Southern Vernacular,” on view in the Haley Gallery until January 7, 2025.

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