By Patricia Belyea
DUNDEE UK I can’t write about my day in Dundee without writing about Lesley Knox. Lesley planned the itinerary, drove us north of Edinburgh for just over an hour, and arranged for us to view The McManus quilt collection.
We met curator Carly Cooper at the ornate entrance of The McManus, Dundee’s Art Gallery and Museum. But instead of stepping into the mammoth Gothic Revival edifice, Carly ushered us across the street to the Collections Unit.
The space, a glass-domed rotunda, felt like a well-loved attic brimming with curiosities: a stuffed moose head, a puffy Michelin man, massive model ships, and other marvelous odds and ends.
Laid out on gray backdrop paper was a child’s patchwork quilt. Its log cabin blocks — often associated with American pioneers and Abraham Lincoln — were a strip-pieced design that actually flourished in Scotland during the mid-1800s.
Next came a dazzling red-and-white quilt stitched by Nicholas White, a steward on two whaling ships in the late 1800s. With more than one hundred cotton prints, Nicholas pieced this showstopper entirely by hand while at sea!
Another red-and-white quilt, decorated with flower baskets, revealed flawless hand piecing. But the machine-sewn handles wobbled in every direction — was a second maker responsible for finishing the quilt?
Hello, Sunbonnet Sue! This early 20th-century children’s pattern became wildly popular, especially since scraps from girls’ dresses could be incorporated into the design. The maker of this quilt creatively added a different stitch detail to each hat.
Carly admitted that the documentation of The McManus quilt collection could use more attention. So while we were there, staff photographer Bruce leaned over the balcony to get overhead shots of the quilts. Then Carly measured each one before carefully rewrapping it in archival tissue and boxing it away.
After thanking Carly, Lesley and I grabbed a quick lunch and headed to our next destination: V&A Dundee.
Inside, Lesley guided me to Garden Futures, a major traveling exhibit. 
Garden Futures, immersive and inspirational, included some uniquely Scottish elements. Lesley pointed out The Garden Carpet, a tapestry designed by Farshid Moussavi Architecture and woven at Edinburgh’s Dovecot Studios. Hey, I just visited Dovecot the day before! 
I am very aware that I lead a blessed life. It is even more apparent when I am so generously hosted in Scotland by such an important arts personage. Thank you Lesley!
To visit the McManus website +click here
To visit the V&A Dundee website +click here
POSTSCRIPT: Bruce, at The McManus Collections Unit, presented us with this printed-out photo from our visit.
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ABOUT US: Okan Arts, a petite family business, is co-owned by mother-daughter duo Patricia Belyea and Victoria Stone. Patricia and Victoria import vintage Japanese textiles, host in-person and online creative quilting experiences, and lead textile tours to Japan.
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