Photo of collection object 7 Heavens
Biggers, Sanford. 7 Heavens, 2013. Quilt, acrylic, spray paint, fabric, found objects, 92 1/4 × 93 1/2 × 1 in. (234.3 × 237.5 × 2.5 cm) storage (Handling support size): 96 × 97 × 2 in. (243.8 × 246.4 × 5.1 cm) mount (with cleat): 93 1/2 × 93 1/2 × 4 in. (237.5 × 237.5 × 10.2 cm). Gift of Sugar Hill Capital Partners, 2017.49.1. © artist or artist's estate.

7 Heavens

2013

Sanford Biggers

American, born 1970

Contemporary Art

Sanford Biggers explores the rich relationships that quilts hold with memory, storytelling, transgenerational knowledge, and the body, in both historical and contemporary contexts. The artist was inspired by the belief that quilts were used and displayed by nineteenth-century abolitionists to convey coded messages and facilitate passage along the Underground Railroad. The title of the work imbues the tradition of quilt-making with a spiritual connection, referring to understandings of the seven different levels of heaven across many faiths. The spiraling and other linear motifs recall sacred geometry, which ascribes symbolic and otherworldly meanings to certain visual forms.
Maker/Artist
Biggers, Sanford
Classification
Textile
Formatted Medium
Quilt, acrylic, spray paint, fabric, found objects
Dimensions
92 1/4 × 93 1/2 × 1 in. (234.3 × 237.5 × 2.5 cm) storage (Handling support size): 96 × 97 × 2 in. (243.8 × 246.4 × 5.1 cm) mount (with cleat): 93 1/2 × 93 1/2 × 4 in. (237.5 × 237.5 × 10.2 cm)
Departments
Contemporary Art
Accession Number
2017.49.1
Credit Line
Gift of Sugar Hill Capital Partners
Rights Statement
© artist or artist's estate
Dominant Colors

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