Jessie T. Pettway, quilt maker extraordinaire, has been relentlessly producing masterpieces for decades.

Pettway, nicknamed “Bootnie,” has been quilting since her childhood in Gee’s Bend, a couple hours south of Birmingham. Like all the coolest artists (looking at you, Andy Warhol) Pettway chose her own moniker. Originally J.T., Pettway chose the name “Jessie” after her teacher, making her the best student in history. Name changes show far more dedication than apples and flimsy Starbucks gift cards.

Pettway’s creations are part of the larger local quilting tradition. In the 1800s, Gee’s Bend was a plantation town with enslaved black workers. With emancipation came a new era of sharecropping in the community. In the 30s, the federal government bought the land and ownership was finally transferred to the black residents of Gee’s Bend. Discrimination, of course, continued; the local ferry was even shut down to keep black residents from their right to vote. Pettway’s take on Gee’s Bend’s unsavory history is frank: “I don't see no great change. White folks get a little nicer, laughing with you now, but it's phony.”

Pettway’s guardian, Aunt Seebell, taught her the local trade. Although she learned young, Pettway certainly wasn’t swimming in free time. She walked five miles to school (a distance many may be guilty of traversing with an Uber) and worked in the house and fields. The talented superwoman managed to become an artist of acclaim despite the hours she dedicated to milking, farming, and everyday chores. She was even featured in a 2006 US stamp collection.

Pettway herself, like many artistic prodigies, doesn’t always get the hype around her own creations. She called a particularly famous quilt she made “just a lot of strings sewed together.” Museums, however, disagree with Pettway’s diagnosis, and for good reason. Most of us could never reach her level of mastery (a few woefully inadequate middle school crafts come to mind). Regardless, the matter of fact quilt maker’s fame persists, and Pettway continues to be featured in books, galleries, and exhibitions galore.