Celebrate the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles’ 50th Anniversary!

History

In 1977, a group of dedicated quilters and arts enthusiasts from the Santa Clara Valley Quilt Association founded the American Museum of Quilts & Related Arts— the first museum in the United States to feature quilts and textiles as its sole focus. At a time when many textile traditions were still being placed outside the boundaries of fine art, the museum helped make space for artists working through material, pattern, structure, stitch, surface, and process. Since 1977, the Museum has undergone many changes, including becoming the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles and settling into our current home on South First Street, but we have continued to champion fiber, cloth, thread, quilt and textile-based practices as vital forms of contemporary art.

As of 2027, we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Museum and invite YOU to celebrate this milestone with us!

Celebrate with us! Open Call for Artists

To celebrate our Golden Anniversary, the Museum invites artists from across the wider Bay Area to submit work for The Next 50: A Bay Area Textile Open, a juried open call exhibition celebrating the breadth, innovation, and vitality of textile art today. Click the button below to learn more about how to submit YOUR textile art for our juried exhibition.

2027 Exhibitions

Learn about our upcoming exhibitions during our Golden Anniversary by exploring our Upcoming Exhibitions page.

To the Next 50 Years

We are pleased to continue to celebrate the artistry and importance of textiles. As we look towards the next 50 years, consider donating to the Museum— we rely on your philanthropy to keep our mission alive.