World's Largest Collection of Quilts

A quilt is a type of bedding— a bed covering composed of a quilt top, a layer of batting, and a layer of fabric for backing, generally combined using the technique of quilting. Another technique for securing the quilt layers is tying. Tying refers to the technique of using thread, yarn or ribbon to pass through all three layers of the quilt at regular intervals. These "ties" hold the layers together during use and especially when the quilt is washed. This method is easier and more forgiving if the quilt is made by hand. Tied quilts are called, depending on the regional area, "hap", "comfort" or "comforter", among other names. Many quilts are made with decorative designs; indeed, some quilts are not used as bed covering at all, but are rather made to be hung on a wall or otherwise displayed.

Amish quilts are reflections of the Amish way. Because the Amish people believe in not being "flashy" or "worldly" in dress and lifestyle, their quilts reflect this religious philosophy. They use solid colors only in their clothing and quilts with some particular church districts limiting the use of certain colors such as yellow or red because those are considered "too worldly". Many Amish quilts feature the use of black which makes the other colors sparkle and gives a contemporary art look to the quilts.

The quilt top is created either from one large piece of cloth or from a number of smaller pieces of cloth called blocks. In the more common case of blocks, a number of techniques are used to create the blocks. The blocks are then sewn together, either edge to edge, or with separator strips of cloth called sashing. Borders are then often added to help set off the piece, and then a binding is added to edge the quilt after the quilting is done. As an example, the quilt image  has 24 blocks arranged in a 4x6 pattern, set with dark sashing strips, corner stones in a contrasting color, an outside sashing strip but no border, and a multicolored binding.

The largest known public collection of quilts is housed at the International Quilt Study Center, part of the Department of Textiles, Clothing & Design in the College of Education and Human Sciences at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska. Established in 1997 with the donation of nearly 950 quilts from the Ardis & Robert James Collection, the collection now numbers nearly 2,000 objects and spans the last three centuries. It includes important collections of Amish quilts, French 18th and 19th century masterworks, the Robert Cargo Collection of African-American quilts, the Jonathan Holstein Collection (which includes all of the quilts shown in the landmark exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1971, "Abstract Design in American Quilts") and an important collection of contemporary art quilts. A construction project to complete a building designed by Robert A. M. Stern Architects to house the Center and its collections was scheduled for groundbreaking in early 2006.