Kate Clayton Donaldson (1864-1960) was best known as Granny Donaldson for the whimsical appliqued and crocheted figures she created in crib size dimensions. Legend has it that Donaldson was inspired by decorative Italian blankets draped over cows during festivals. Donaldson, however, claimed that the form was of her own imagination and that each blanket was different. She is alleged to have said "I can't rightly tell you how I come to make the first one. Nobody taught me or showed me. I never got the ideas from anybody and I never copied one for the good reason I'd never seen one, much less heard tell of one". Donaldson lived in Marble, North Carolina and did most of her work in the 1930's. Her imaginative pieces are in several museums including the American Folk Art Museum; Berea College Appalachian Museum and the Southern Highland Handicraft Guild Folk Art Center. The "blankets" often have a central tree and a combination of figures and animals. Granny Donaldson is a true icon of American folk art.
This example is in a frame measuring 31 1/2" x 24 1/2". There is a small crack to the upper right hand corner of the glass.
