An illuminating picture book biography of an artist and former slave whose patchwork quilts bring the stories of her family to life.
Harriet Powers learned to sew and quilt as a young slave girl on a Georgia plantation. She lived through the Civil War and Reconstruction, and eventually owned a cotton farm with her family, all the while relying on her skills with the needle to clothe and feed her children.
Later she began making pictorial quilts, using each square to illustrate Bible stories and local legends. She exhibited her quilts at local cotton fairs, and though she never traveled outside of Georgia, her quilts are now priceless examples of African American folk art.
Barbara Herkert’s lyrical narrative and Vanessa Newton’s patchwork illustrations bring this important artist to life in a moving picture-book biography.
"A much-needed introduction to the life of a little known African American artist, with many possible curriculum connections: artists, quilters, women’s history, and the Civil War."--School Library Journal
"As a picture-book introduction to an unsung artist, it inspires. Harriet Powers: an artist worth knowing."--Kirkus Reviews
Vanessa Brantley-Newton is a self-taught illustrator, doll maker, and crafter who studied fashion illustration at FIT and children's book illustration at the School of Visual Arts in New York. She is the author and illustrator of Grandma's Purse, Just Like Me, and Becoming Vanessa, and has illustrated numerous children's books, including the New York Times bestsellers The King of Kindergarten and The Queen of Kindergarten by Derrick Barnes and Sewing Stories by Barbara Herkert. Vanessa currently makes her nest in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her husband, daughter, and a very rambunctious cat named Stripes. Learn more about Vanessa and her artwork at VanessaBrantleyNewton.com and on Facebook and Instagram.
View titles by Vanessa Brantley-Newton
An illuminating picture book biography of an artist and former slave whose patchwork quilts bring the stories of her family to life.
Harriet Powers learned to sew and quilt as a young slave girl on a Georgia plantation. She lived through the Civil War and Reconstruction, and eventually owned a cotton farm with her family, all the while relying on her skills with the needle to clothe and feed her children.
Later she began making pictorial quilts, using each square to illustrate Bible stories and local legends. She exhibited her quilts at local cotton fairs, and though she never traveled outside of Georgia, her quilts are now priceless examples of African American folk art.
Barbara Herkert’s lyrical narrative and Vanessa Newton’s patchwork illustrations bring this important artist to life in a moving picture-book biography.
Reviews
"A much-needed introduction to the life of a little known African American artist, with many possible curriculum connections: artists, quilters, women’s history, and the Civil War."--School Library Journal
"As a picture-book introduction to an unsung artist, it inspires. Harriet Powers: an artist worth knowing."--Kirkus Reviews
Vanessa Brantley-Newton is a self-taught illustrator, doll maker, and crafter who studied fashion illustration at FIT and children's book illustration at the School of Visual Arts in New York. She is the author and illustrator of Grandma's Purse, Just Like Me, and Becoming Vanessa, and has illustrated numerous children's books, including the New York Times bestsellers The King of Kindergarten and The Queen of Kindergarten by Derrick Barnes and Sewing Stories by Barbara Herkert. Vanessa currently makes her nest in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her husband, daughter, and a very rambunctious cat named Stripes. Learn more about Vanessa and her artwork at VanessaBrantleyNewton.com and on Facebook and Instagram.
View titles by Vanessa Brantley-Newton
