Laverne Brackens Day was declared by Fairfield Mayor Kenneth Hughes during ‘The Art of the Quilt’ exhibition last week at the Williford Foundation in downtown Fairfield. The event was hosted by members of Trinity Star Arts Council.
“I want to thank everybody,” said the 95-year-old folk artist as she graciously accepted the official document. “This means a very lot to me.”
Among the family and community members attending included Elaine Yau, curator at the University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA); along with Roderick Kiracofe, collector of quilt art, author of several books on American quilting art and co-founder of the The Quilt Digest.
The two had traveled from California to meet with Mrs. Brackens and her family.
Not long ago, BAMPFA received a bequest of nearly three thousand quilts created by African American artists. The collection includes quits made by Laverne Brackens, her mother Gladys Henry, and her daughter, Shelly Byrd.
These came from the late collector and art scholar Eli Leon, who brought nation-wide attention to the quilting art legacy of the family.
Mrs. Brackens quilts have been featured in several exhibitions, in several museums across the country. In 2011, she was the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts, National Heritage Foundation fellow, the highest honor for both folk and traditional arts in the United States.
That same year, First Lady Michelle Obama commissioned Mrs. Brackens for a quilt to gift the first lady of South Korea.
Four of Laverne Brackens’ quilts are currently on display through October 28th at the Williford Foundation, at 115 South Mount Street, for those who missed the opening event. They are open Monday – Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
(Photos by Karen Leidy)
