Loretta Pettway Bennett

Ms. Loretta Pettway Bennett learned to quilt in Gee’s Bend, Alabama, as a young girl, surrounded by generations of women who made quilting a way of life. She often says quilting was “implanted in her genes.” At eighteen, she married and traveled widely with her husband during his military tours, living abroad in places including Germany.

Over the years, she created quilts while raising her children, including an ambitious Wedding Ring quilt that took three years to complete. After seeing The Quilts of Gee’s Bend exhibition in 2002, she felt newly inspired to pursue quilting seriously and began creating work with the hope that her quilts might one day hang in museums.

Between 2003 and 2006, Ms. Bennett made approximately twenty-five quilts and frequently collaborated with her mother, Ms. Qunnie Pettway. Her travels strongly influence her color choices and designs. She often sketches patterns on paper and colors them with crayons before piecing quilts together using recycled clothing and thrifted fabrics. Her work is held in the permanent collections of the Studio Museum in Harlem and the Legacy Museum.

You can purchase Loretta’s quilts at the following galleries:

https://www.gregkucera.com/represented-artists/loretta-pettway-bennett