Quilts by Helen Anderson, Jean Duffy and Otylia Mozer
Quilts by Helen Anderson, Jean Duffy and Otylia Mozer
Presented by:
Thayer Gallery
November 21 - December 31, 2008
All images © 2008, Exhibiting Artists
On-line catalog © 2008, Paris Gibson Square, Inc. All rights reserved.
Catalog designed by Bob Durden, Curator of Art, Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art.
Essays by Deanna Burgmaier from interviews with the Artists in March, 2007.
Courtesy of Falls Quilt Guild, Great Falls, Montana.
Museum programming is made possible by
the generosity of museum members and supporters, with
ongoing assistance from The National Endowment for the Arts,
the Montana Arts Council and the Citizens of Cascade County.
(Fig. 1) Helen Anderson, Gemstone
Machine pieced and quilted, 91 ½ x 75 inches
(Fig. 2) Jean Duffy, Mother’s Flower Basket
Hand pieced and quilted, 92 ½ x 84 inches
(Fig. 3) Otylia Mozer, Twelve Days of Christmas
Hand appliquéd and quilted, 101 x 79 ½ inches
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“Layered Comfort is the second in a series of fiber arts exhibitions that began earlier this
Fall. The exhibition focuses on utilitarian quilts that comfort family members and friends of
the first inductees into the Falls Quilt Guild’s Hall of Fame, Great Falls, Montana, and represents a wide range of quilting technique and applications.
In an era when the definitions of Contemporary art often exclude such robust, earnest, and
long-established craft traditions, people continue to create functional art-works that are
amazing to behold and worthy of public display. Their creative endeavors remind us of our
ties to a recent age that demanded modesty, self-sufficiency and ingenuity. These exhibited
quilts re-contextualize our notions about the value of time and personal achievement. The
number of stitches required to complete each quilt measures the demanding discipline that
necessitates patience, vision and often a collaborative spirit in order to create something
personal and extraordinary to be cherished for a lifetime. The Square is proud to present
this exhibition as another example of the relevant and diverse ‘art of our time.’
The exhibition was made possible by a community of people committed to the Arts, quality of life issues, community building and education. We extend our thanks to: the exhibiting artists, Helen Anderson and Jean Duffy and Jonette Potts (Tillie Mozer’s daughter) for
sharing these quilts with the public; Falls Quilt Guild for its permission to reprint Deanna
Burgmaier’s biographies: Deborah Hunter, Pat Valtinson and Lynne Wahlert for their expertise, guidance and leadership in organizing this exhibition; and the National Endowment
for the Arts, Montana Arts Council, Citizens of Cascade County and our Members for their
on-going financial support of programming at The Square.”—Bob Durden, Curator of Art
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(Fig. 4) Helen Anderson, Wedding Star, paper pieced quilt, 88 ½ x 77 inches
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HELEN COLEMAN ANDERSON
“Helen Anderson’s first quilt was a Dresden Plate pattern she made when she
was in high school. A busy life of work, family and her artwork kept her away from
quilting for about twenty years, although the fascination with the sewing process
that captured her when she was a child maintained a hold on her.
Helen, the oldest of four children, was born in 1933 at Bainville, Montana to Joseph
and Luverne (Behling) Coleman. Her sister and brothers are Donna McLaughlin
of Great Falls, Leon Coleman who lives in Missoula, and Howard Coleman of
Great Falls. The family moved to Great Falls when Helen was three years old and
there she attended Franklin Elementary School. She graduated from Great Falls High in 1951. Telegraph
school took her to Seattle, and then work as a telegrapher for the Great Northern Railway brought her
back to Great Falls. After her marriage to William Anderson, she worked at the Great Falls Public Library
for 24 years. In 1974, they moved to Fort Benton where their son, Vernon, his wife Lori and their sons, V.
J. and Casey live. Helen was the City Treasurer for the city of Fort Benton for ten years. Currently she is a
salesperson and quilt teacher at Bless My Buttons, a quilt shop in Fort Benton. And she ‘gets to be around
all that fabric!’
Watching her mother Luverne sew, sparked Helen’s fascination for the entire process, from cutting out
patterns to operating the treadle sewing machine. Her mother taught her the craft when Helen was a very
young child. Her grandmother, who lived in Indiana, was a quilter as was her mother. The quilts they made
were strictly utilitarian for warmth and were used every day. Helen fondly remembers those quilts of long
ago but they served their purpose, wore out and were gone before she appreciated the time and work that
went into them.
Quilting is just one of the artistic avenues Helen has taken. She has been painting and doing artwork for
over thirty years so it is just natural that her talents and hard work have earned her many blue ribbons at
fairs and quilt shows, plus several well-deserved major awards. In 1998, she was awarded Best of Show
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in Quilted Clothing at the Montana State Fair. Her
quilt, Wedding Star, won People’s Choice at both the
Chouteau County Fair in 1999 and the Quilts on the
Prairie Quilt Show in 2000. She was awarded Best of
Show for her Sunflower Wall Hanging at the Chouteau County Fair in 2005. Helen’s Midnight Garden
quilt won the Professional Quilt-A-Way Award and
Judge’s Choice Award at the Montana State Fair. It
also won the People’s Choice and Vendor’s Choice
awards at the Falls Quilt Show in 2005.
A person who nominated Helen for the Hall of Fame
stated, ‘I’m impressed with how Helen’s quilting
evolves and continues to be an ongoing changing
thing. She is a trend setter.’ Helen says she draws
her inspiration from patterns, fabrics, colors, and
the classes she enjoys attending to learn new techniques. Making a quilt for someone special is a joy
for her. She can think about that person as she is
spending the many hours working on the quilt. She
is usually also planning her next quilt as she is working on her present project.
(Fig. 5) Helen Anderson, Midnight Garden, hand appliquéd, 96 x 85 inches
For many years, she and her husband of 54 years,
Bill, spent their summers in a fifth-wheel trailer camping and traveling. She bought a hand-crank sewing
machine to take along. Helen said, ‘Many times I
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would be sewing at the picnic table and a lady would stop by to see what was going on. Not even
travel kept me from my quilting.’ This just shows how dedicated she is to the art of quilting.
Helen is a very active member of the Falls Quilt Guild [Great Falls, Montana] and the Eye of the
Needle Quilt Guild in Fort Benton, Montana. She served as quilt show chairman for the Falls Quilt
Show in 1997, 1999, and 2001, which is a huge undertaking. Making Comforters for Kids and
Adopt a Bear quilts is a joy for her as she said, ‘Sharing quilts with kids in crisis is truly wonderful.’
She has also shared her artistic quilting skills to design and fabricate large banners for the United
Methodist Church in Fort Benton.
These are Helen’s words about a recent and probably her greatest challenge, ‘In 2003, I was
diagnosed with breast cancer. I was confined to home and quilting filled many an hour until the
effects of chemotherapy took over and I was unable to even use the sewing machine. For three
long months, my days were filled with reading quilting magazines and books, and dreaming of the
day when I could start working on quilts again. I knew I had to get well as there were just too many
quilts I needed to finish, plus all the new ones I wanted to make. My prayers were answered. I feel
that quilting played a big part in my recovery.’
Some closing thoughts from Helen: ‘I enjoy quilting—I have many more quilts than I can ever use,
but I know that these quilts will be appreciated for years to come by my family and friends.’ Yes,
Helen, your quilts will be treasured for generations to come. You have created a legacy with your
talents.
Helen was inducted into the Falls Quilt Guild Hall of Fame in a ceremony held at the Salvation Army Center on Tuesday, April 10, 2007. This was the first Induction Ceremony held by the
Guild.”—Compiled by Deanna Burgmaier from an interview with Helen Anderson in March, 2007.
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(Fig. 6) Jean Duffy, Grandmother’s Flower Garden, 100 x 100 inches
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JEAN MONROE DUFFY
“The wealth of knowledge and love of quilt history Jean Duffy shares with so
many of us, began when she was a child in the 1930’s. Her grandmother,
Hulda Steadman, was a farm wife who collected flour and feed sacks for fabric to make her quilts. Jean remembers her job of pulling the strings from the
sacks. The string was saved and used for crochet thread that her grandmother used to teach her granddaughters to crochet. Jean treasures her memories of going into the bedroom at her grandmother’s, where the piles of sacks
were stored, and ‘feeling’ the fabrics. From this experience, Jean developed
her passion for quilts and quilting. ‘She has become one of the foremost authorities in Central Montana,’ stated a person who nominated her.
Jean is a native Montanan, born in Great Falls, Montana in 1933. The year of her birth possibly explains
her love for quilts and fabrics from the 1930’s and 1940’s. Her family soon moved to Deer Park, Washington, north of Spokane, where she graduated. She and her family came back to Billings, Montana when she
was 18. Thirty-five years ago she moved to Great Falls, with her husband, Ken, and raised her family there.
Jean’s five children and nine grandchildren have all enjoyed the benefits of a quilting mother. She wants
her children to ‘use’ their quilts so she machine pieces and machine quilts them.
However, Jean’s devotion to the preservation and history of quilts and quilting has led her to hand piece,
hand appliqué, and hand quilt most of the quilts she makes. A 56 block Wind Blown Girl (a very appropriate
quilt for a Great Falls native), a full-size Grandmother’s Flower Garden, an embroidered State Flower quilt,
and her Mother’s Flower Basket are some of her many works of art, which are all true to traditional piecing
and quilting. Her use of vintage fabric when possible adds to the authentic appeal of her work. To explain
how intricate her work is, her Mother’s Flower Basket contains 2,000 hexagons forming fields of diamonds,
triangles and flowers in a basket.
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Not only does Jean create heirloom quality quilts, a nominator said, ‘She has amassed one of the most complete collections of quilts and quilting memorabilia in the state.’ Several of her quilts (old and new) are carefully and beautifully
displayed for all to enjoy, not just stored away. Of course,
Jean takes every precaution to protect and preserve her
treasures, while at the same time enjoying their beauty and
sharing them.
Jean’s passion is preserving quilts, especially those from
the 1800’s through the 1940’s, whether they belong to her
or someone else. Recently, someone needed advice on restoring a vintage quilt. Some of the fabric needed to be replaced. Jean happened to have the original vintage fabric
for the quilt and gave it to the owner so the quilt could be
restored as close to its original condition as possible. This
is a perfect example of Jean’s generosity and desire to preserve all quilts.
(Fig. 7) Jean Duffy, State Flowers
Hand and machine quilted with embroidery, 98 x 77 inches
She was instrumental in a project to document quilts in the
north central area of our state. She and other historians traveled to other towns in the area to date and document quilts.
Quoting her nomination, ‘Her devotion and knowledge is
unselfishly shared with those seeking advice and information on all aspects of quilting from quilt documentation, fabric selection, and sewing techniques, to the proper care and
storage of family quilts.’ Jean is also adamant about how to
properly handle and clean old quilts so damage doesn’t occur to priceless possessions during the process. 9
She has presented programs and demonstrations at guild meetings in Great Falls, Shelby, and Fort Benton, at the State Fair and at the Quilts on the Prairie Quilt Show. Jean has provided many hours of work
to benefit quilters and quilt recipients here and around the world. For seven years, Jean held the position
of chairman of the Falls Guild Komforters for Kids project, which provides quilts for children in need. For
years, she helped display State Fair quilts and assisted the State Fair quilting judges. She understood the
importance of displaying antique quilts for historical preservation and initiated the display of antique quilts
at the Falls Quilt Show. She also was chairman of the first Country Store at the quilt show, which helps
some of us clean out our unneeded quilting supplies and helps others acquire things they need. For years, Jean has worked on World Relief Quilts through her church. Although these quilts are primarily tied, she taught a class on hand quilting to the women of the church. The quilt they created won a blue
ribbon at the State Fair. As Falls Guild historian a few years after the guild began, Jean took photos of the
show-and-tell projects and saved them in a scrapbook—more history of quilters and their quilts she has
preserved.
Jean has received numerous awards: a red ribbon in the hand appliqué division for her Wind Blown Girl
at the State Fair, third place People’s Choice at the Quilts on the Prairie Quilt Show, the Falls Quilt Guild
Quilting Excellence Award at the State Fair in 2004, The Falls Quilt Guild Best of Show Bed Quilt in 2003,
a blue ribbon in the hand pieced, hand quilted division at State Fair and an award for being a 20 year exhibitor at the State Fair.
Along with all her outstanding community service, historical preservation efforts, programs to share her
knowledge, and willingness to help others, Jean has at least twelve quilts in progress. She has these projects decoratively stored in baskets and antique containers. The most creative storage of a quilt top is a
Churn Dash project stashed in an antique butter churn. This ambitious lady will never be without something
to do whether it is for herself, her family, the quilting community, or the people of Great Falls.
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Jean was inducted into the Falls Quilt Guild Hall of Fame in a ceremony held at the Salvation Army Center
on Tuesday, April 10, 2007. This was the first Induction Ceremony held by the Guild.”—Deanna Burgmaier
compiled from an interview with Jean Duffy in March, 2007.
(Fig. 8) Tillie Mozer, Royal Stars of the States: Wisconsin State Star, machine pieced and hand quilted, 85 ½ x 93 inches
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OTYLIA (TILLIE) AUGUSTA (LUND) MOZER (1912—2007)
“If you were to visit Tillie Mozer at her home, you may not realize what a prolific
quilter she is. There are few if any of her own works on display. She will, however, proudly tell you about the quilts her daughter and granddaughters make. Her
daughter, Jonette, made the two quilts that decorate her living room. You may catch
a glimpse of a quilt or two but they are probably works-in-progress folded over a
chair. Only direct questions about her quilting will elicit responses from this humble
woman about her own accomplishments as a quilter.
Tillie is most proud of her family, Tom, Mike, and Jonette and their children. They
are very close to their mother even though they live far apart. Two granddaughters
call Tillie once a week to say, ‘I love you.’ They say they like to come to Grandma’s because ‘they learn to do
something.’ Tillie is passing on her knowledge and love of quilting to future generations. One of Mike’s favorite memories is that while growing up his home never had an empty cookie jar. His mother saw to that.
It was Tillie’s mother who sparked this lifelong desire to make quilts. If you had lived on the North Dakota
prairie 65 miles north of Minot in the 1920’s like Tillie and her eight brothers and sisters, you would have
needed very warm quilts also. It was out of necessity that her mother made quilts for the family. In the early
1900’s, fabric was scarce so scraps left over from making the family’s clothing were the only resource for
making the log cabin and grandmother’s flower garden quilts her mother constructed. The family raised
sheep, so wool bats from shearing the sheep filled the utilitarian quilts. At a young age, Tillie learned to quilt,
using a Singer treadle sewing machine. All of her grandparents lived in the ‘old country’ so she didn’t have
contact with a grandmother to help teach her to quilt like many quilters did.
Life was difficult for a farm family during the drought years of the 1920’s and 1930’s. Tillie’s father didn’t raise
enough wheat to sell a single bushel for 11 straight years. The family subsisted on raising chickens and selling them and their eggs, along with milk and cream from the 17 cows. Tillie and her sister milked every morning before going to school. We may consider this life difficult; Tillie never did. She fondly reminisces that her
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mother always remembered the birthdays of her children,
Christmas and Easter with celebrations.
After high school, Tillie taught in a one-room country school
for four years. She had 48 students in eight grades, taught
every subject and was paid $70 a month. At this time, Tillie’s
sister lived in Choteau and Tillie traveled there to help her
sister take care of people who couldn’t take care of themselves. There she met and married her husband, John,
when she was 22 years old. They later moved to Great
Falls and raised their family there. Rather than working
outside the home, Tillie stayed at home and cared for her
family. She always had a wonderful garden and still raises
a garden every summer.
(Fig. 9) Tillie Mozer, Circles of the Orient
Hand appliquéd and quilted, 87 x 72 inches
The work ethic Tillie developed in her formative years
probably explains why she would even consider attempting to make full size star quilts from all 50 states! She began piecing the tops in 1989 and pieced the 50th one in
1995. Most are now hand quilted, (which is the only way
to quilt a quilt, according to Tillie) but she has a few left
to do. These are in addition to the 24 hand appliquéd full
size Christmas quilts she has made for family, friends, and
benefits. When asked how many quilts she has made, Tillie replied, ‘Oh, I have no idea.’ A conservative estimate
would be 200. Mike has at least 15 of her hand quilted
quilts, Tom has at least 17 and Jonette has several. There
are some of these finished treasures stacked in her closet,
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on the beds and in dresser drawers. The first quilt she made as an adult adorns a guest bed in her
home. It is a bear paw pattern that she pieced and hand quilted in 1971.
As would be expected, the list of awards is extensive. She won the blue ribbon award in the hand
appliquéd, hand quilted category at both the 1985 and 1986 Montana State Fairs, the People’s
Choice Award at the Falls Quilt Show in 1985 and again in 1997, and awards at the Miles City
Quilt Show in 1997. She was the featured quilter at the Glendive Quilt Show in 2001 and the featured quilter at the State Fair in 1997. Quilters Newsletter Magazine did a feature article about her
in the Jan./Feb. 1998 issue. Tillie is proud that a stained glass quilt she made for her mother now
hangs in a church in memory of her mother.
Tillie gives freely of her time and talents. For several years, she spent many hours helping hand
appliqué and hand quilt the Falls Quilt Show raffle quilts. A person who nominated her for the Hall
of Fame Award wrote, ‘She has mentored many young quilters and is still eager to help others.’
I think we would all agree with Tillie when she says, ‘I live a good life. I enjoy my home, my quilting, my garden, and my family.’
Tillie, who was not present because she was hospitalized in Minnesota, was inducted into the
Falls Quilt Guild Hall of Fame in a ceremony held at the Salvation Army Center on Tuesday, April
10, 2007. This was the first Induction Ceremony held by the Guild.
Post Script: Soon after learning of her induction into the Falls Quilt Guild Hall of Fame, Tillie left
Great Falls in late March to visit her son in Minneapolis, a trip she was excited to make. While
there, she suffered a stroke and on April 15, 2007 she passed away with family members near.”—
Deanna Burgmaier, compiled from an interview with Tillie Mozer in March, 2007.
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Exhibition Checklist:
Helen Anderson
Midnight Garden, hand appliquéd, 96 x 85 inches
Wedding Star, paper pieced, 88 ½ x 77 inches
Gemstone, machine pieced and quilted, 91 ½ x 75 inches
Jean Duffy
Mother’s Flower Basket, hand pieced and quilted, 92 ½ x 84 inches
Grandmother’s Flower Garden, 100 x 100 inches
State Flowers, hand and machine quilted with embroidery, 98 x 77 inches
Tillie Mozer
Royal Stars of the States: Wisconsin State Star, machine pieced and hand quilted, 85 ½ x 93 inches
Twelve Days of Christmas, hand appliquéd and quilted, 101 x 79 ½ inches
Circles of the Orient, hand appliquéd and quilted, 87 x 72 inches
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