Crazy Quilt
Ladies Aid or Mission Society, c.1890
Gift of Dora Rankin, History San Jose Collection

She Made It! The Tradition of Women’s Arts and Crafts in Santa Clara Valley is an exhibition of over 35 handmade items that explores the transition of women’s craftmaking from that of utilitarian production or social development tool to a form of art and individual expression.

Mostly selected from History San Jose’s collection, the exhibit includes quilts and samplers, clothing and accessories, baskets and hair work, many of which are on display for the first time. Three generations of hand-made wedding dresses provide visual cues of how times have changed from 1895 to 1982.

Today crafts have become hobbies and objects d’arte, but they have not always been that way. Often passed from mother to daughter or from aunt to niece, the handiwork of the women in the family once stemmed from basic human necessities: food and clothing, shelter and warmth. She Made It! will include samples of young women’s skill development, as samplers and baskets; tools of the trade and original designs and commemorative pieces, such as Victorian hair art. Yes, human hair. During Victorian times it was customary to wear jewelry made of a loved one’s hair as a pin, and even sometimes as a framed wall hanging.

Textile artist and clothing designer Marion Clayden has made a long career of pioneering methods of dyeing, printing, painting and aging fabrics. Her clothing designs evoke elegance, innovative styling and high quality craftsmanship. History San Jose will display examples of some of her original fabrics, an example in themselves of the transition from function to art.

Half-size dress forms with draped dresses, c.1960
San Jose State Home Economics Department
Estate of Dr. Barbara Christensen
History San Jose Collection

The San Jose State Textile Program was once a component of the Home Economics department. Students were instructed in clothing and fabric design, and produced many of the artifacts that will be on display. Although this department dissolved in 1987, instruction in weaving and textile arts can still be found on campus through the School of Art & Design. The most contemporary example in this exhibit is a woven piece by SJSU Art & Design Faculty and head of the Textiles program, Consuelo J. Underwood. Her contribution to the exhibit is entitled Zewa Sisters from 2000, and is a loom-woven, silk-screened, and embroidered piece made of silk, corn husk, and metallic thread, and addresses her own heritage of Mexican and indigenous Indian descent.

She Made It! opens to the public at the Leonard and David McKay Gallery at the Pasetta House in History Park on Friday, October 24, noon to 5 p.m. Gallery hours are Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 4pm.

Exhibition sponsor: Yvonne Caire Head

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