The Rest Cure Quilt

This piece gathers historical images of women undergoing the “rest cure,” including photographs of Dr. Jean-Martin Charcot’s performances of the defunct disease, hysteria, now understood as misdiagnosed conditions like epilepsy. Interwoven are early anatomical diagrams from “The Wandering Womb” and documentation of other treatments such as mercury baths, fire hose therapies, and shock devices. I printed these images using cyanotype, a process contemporary to the Victorian Era, and sewed them into a quilt. Using the language of women’s work, I created a labor intentive and personal connection to these women as my ancestors. I also see quilts as an extension of my book arts practice: structured like pages, read piece by piece, holding time and memory in their folds, inviting the viewer to read across their surface slowly, like turning through a book of forgotten histories.

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