WASHINGTON, DC – They are quilts that evoke their maker’s taste, position, and status. They are masterpieces stitched by many hands. These Virginia and Maryland quilts show how their makers’ designs moved with them and continued to show their origins. A new exhibition at the DAR Museum, featuring more than 30 early-American quilts, highlights not only the beauty of the textiles, but also the women who made the quilts.

Alden O'Brien is the curator for Eye on Elegance: Early Quilts of Maryland Virginia. She has been curator of costume and toys at the DAR Museum since 1990. In 2003, Ms. O’Brien took over care of the textile collection. She has curated numerous costume and quilt exhibits, most recently Fashioning the New Woman: American Women and Fashion, 1890-1925. Alden O’Brien holds a Master of Arts in museum studies in costume and textiles from the Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York, and a Bachelors of Arts in art history from Barnard College.

The DAR Museum contracted with Assemble for exhibition and website design for Eye on Elegance: Early Quilts of Maryland and Virginia. Assemble is a nonprofit design and media studio that works with institutions to create immersive narrative experiences onsite, online and in classrooms. Assemble has produced a variety of narrative experiences, including major exhibitions at Maryland Science Center, Longwood Gardens, and the National Building Museum. The organization is currently engaged in partnerships with scientists to present models of sustainability on the Chesapeake Bay and archaeologists researching the lives of enslaved African Americans in Maryland.