Mary Virginia Pettway

 

Mary Virginia Pettway was born in Gee’s Bend in 1960 and grew up in a hotbed of artistic virtuosity. Mary went through the seventh grade in Gee’s Bend and her group of childhood friends include an impressive roster of celebrated artists including, Loretta Pettway Bennett, Mary Margaret Pettway, Sharon Williams and Emma Mooney Pettway.

Mary was taught the art of quilting by her mother, Marie Pettway Mooney her great grandmother, Catherine Mooney Pettway and her great-great grandmother, Lucy Mooney.

“ My first memories of quilts are from around the age of four or five and are of my mother piecing quilt tops and playing beneath them while she and women from the community quilted the three layers needed to finish the quilt.  I can remember vividly hearing the pulling of the thread through the three layers. Spring was the time of year when quilts were hung on the clothesline to air out, this was my favor time because you could run through the quilts as they blew in the wind.

I watched my mother piece together quilts out of worn shirts and pants. She did use new fabric when it was available. Her way of laying out  a quilt top taught me to use my imagination in a way that is meaningful and forgiving. This work shows me acceptance and allows me to embrace the imperfections of the material as well as in myself."

Mary recalls her mother’s training in assembling quilt compositions that would incorporate contrasting and harmonic elements as a quilt top design was laid out. Her mother made a special point to focus on harmony between pieces within a design.

“If the harmony is missing, it just doesn’t happen. I keep working with the pieces and the design until everything comes into harmony. I need everything to be in balance, including myself, I am part of the work. Piecing things together the right way does include myself, not just the colors and textures of the fabric.

When I quilt, I love to hear the thread pull through the fabric, it takes me back to sewing with my Mom. It is a reminder of a time of peace for me working with my Mom and the large groups of women from the community working together. We carry a memory of peace when we work and we can never let it go."

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