Elegant Geometry: British and American Mosaic Patchwork Quilts

Exhibition Website

Oct 21 2017 - Jan 21 2018

Taft Museum

Cincinnati, OH

For nearly 300 years, quilt makers have created a dazzling range of designs using the versatile mosaic patchwork technique. The 21 quilts in Elegant Geometry highlight the skill, intelligence, and artistry of the women who practiced mosaic patchwork quilting during its early years. Mosaic quilters wrapped and sewed cloth around identically sized, geometrically shaped paper pieces. They then stitched the tiny units together into intricate patterns. 

The earliest quilts in the exhibition originated in 18th-century England. British colonists brought the technique to the New World, where American women embraced it. American quilts in Elegant Geometry date through the 19th century and were made by women from Eastern and Midwestern states including Kentucky and Ohio.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website


Whether or not you go, Elegant Geometry - American and British Mosaic Patchwork, published by the International Quilt Study Center and Museum presents an exemplary range of designs using the versatile mosaic patchwork technique.

Select Elegant Geometry - American and British Mosaic Patchwork to place this book in your Amazon shopping cart. 






  • Fiber Arts
  • European
  • 18th Century

Exhibition Venues & Dates