Spectrum I quilt, Virginia Randles

Archive Label 2003 (version 1):
A resident of Athens, Ohio, and Lawrence, Kansas, Virginia Randles was one of the leading quilt designers in the United States. Her innovative designs were influenced by the color theories of modern painter Joseph Albers, the writings of Swiss psychologist C. J. Jung, as well as her grandmother’s “button box.” Spectrum I was the first original quilt that Randles made.

In addition to being a renowned and accomplished quilt designer, Randles was one of the founding members of Quilt National, the prime juried exhibition of art quilts in this country.

Exhibition Label:
"Geometric Abstractions: Quilts 1870 to 1990," Jun-2002, Samantha Schramm
Virginia Randles graduated from the University of Kansas Medical Center in the 1930s. She was one of the founding members of Quilt National, the prime juried exhibition of art quilts in the United States. Originally a weaver, Randles turned to making quilts in the 1970s.

In Spectrum I the primary design is a square filled with vibrant squares of many colors. The work shows the artist’s interest in the theories of Josef Albers, who gave color an unprecedented voice and demonstrated that the same color allows multiple readings according to the hues that surround it. Randles creates quilts that astonish by the liveliness and vibrancy of color and geometric pattern.