Quilt
- Description
-
Handmade memorial quilt given to the family of Jennifer Louise Fialko. The quilt is made with blue patterned fabrics with 20 white quilt squares in the center and 20 unique appliquéd birds in blue. A tag attached to the back of the quilt reads:
"To the families of the victims of 9-11-2001 | With this quilt: we wish you CLOSURE to the terrible tragedy that took your loved ones on Sept. 11, 2001. | With this quilt: We give you a place to MOURN and a place to REMEMBER their courage and happier times. | With this quilt: We give you LOVE—from the quiltmakers, from the donators, and from the hearts of American's everywhere. | Connie Daniel, Team Leader America's 9-11 Victims' Memorial Quilt." - Historical Notes
- Born in Englewood, New Jersey, Jennifer Fialko lived in Teaneck. She had studied in Spain and was fluent in Spanish. Jennifer enjoyed playing softball and water-skiing. She had survived Hodgkin’s disease and was interested in nutrition and alternative medicine. Jennifer worked in client services at Aon Corporation. On September 11, she was at her office on the South Tower’s 92nd floor. She was 29 years old.
Curator's Comment
The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, ignited a global passion to provide aid and comfort. For those unable to participate in actual rescue and recovery efforts at the various disaster sites, quilting emerged as one practical and creative way to demonstrate compassion and support for 9/11 family members, responders, survivors, and others who were profoundly affected by the attacks.
Traditionally the outcome of either communal or solitary cutting, piecing, and sewing efforts, quilts are both functional and tactile expressions of their makers’ emotions, ideas, and materials at hand that could be recruited into meaningful service. Those drawn to making quilts in response to 9/11 frequently used patriotic motifs, religious symbols, and images that quickly became emblematic of the attacks, such as the Twin Towers, the 5-sided Pentagon, airplanes, and firefighting paraphernalia. Some quilts served as memorial gestures in honor of specific individuals or groups of coworkers who had been killed while also performing therapeutic and healing functions for those making them. Communication of the magnitude of human loss suffered on 9/11 and the event’s disproportionate impact on particular companies, agencies, towns, and colleges are other themes that emerged among quilters.
Traditionally the outcome of either communal or solitary cutting, piecing, and sewing efforts, quilts are both functional and tactile expressions of their makers’ emotions, ideas, and materials at hand that could be recruited into meaningful service. Those drawn to making quilts in response to 9/11 frequently used patriotic motifs, religious symbols, and images that quickly became emblematic of the attacks, such as the Twin Towers, the 5-sided Pentagon, airplanes, and firefighting paraphernalia. Some quilts served as memorial gestures in honor of specific individuals or groups of coworkers who had been killed while also performing therapeutic and healing functions for those making them. Communication of the magnitude of human loss suffered on 9/11 and the event’s disproportionate impact on particular companies, agencies, towns, and colleges are other themes that emerged among quilters.
- Accession Number: C.2014.545.4
- Dimensions: 63 in X 54 in
- Dimensions (Metric): 160.02 cm X 137.16 cm
- Source: Robert and Evelyn Fialko
- Credit Line: Gift of the Fialko family in memory of our daughter, Jennifer Louise Fialko
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