Ben Millett’s quilts are tactile records, coded with color, memory and meaning. They look soft because they are, but their softness doesn’t dull their message. Instead, it amplifies it.
On July 26, 2025, the Des Moines Art Center will open its first-ever quilt-based solo exhibition, “Iowa Artists 2025: Ben Millett,” a showcase of about 20 quilted works that blend traditional craftsmanship with bold visual storytelling. Running through Nov. 2, the exhibition weaves together themes of queer identity, pop culture, family legacy and artistic innovation, all within the humble, yet historically rich, frame of quilting.
There’s a dashed line, Millett says, between quilting as an art versus a utility.
“I would hope [the line] is almost nonexistent,” he continued. “I think [the desired need] changes. Maybe I want the quilt to be used primarily for visibility, a beauty to look at, or for physical warmth. I think it can go back and forth, sometimes in the same day.”
Millett’s journey into quilting didn’t begin in an art studio, but sitting beside his aging grandmother, who crafted quilts for every family member as they reached major life milestones. Millett stepped in when she could no longer keep up. What began as a gesture of care became a calling.
Millett was tasked with creating a queen-sized quilt for his cousin. At the same time, a nephew was born. Millett was resourceful, taking the leftover fabric from the queen quilt to create one for the baby.
“I really enjoyed the process for the baby quilt — having this pile of leftover fabric and trying to figure out how to make it into something beautiful,” Millett said. “I made more quilts as more nieces and nephews came, but there are only so many couches and beds you can cover with quilts.”
Long after all familial needs for quilted goods were filled, the desire to create remained, and quilting evolved from hobby to art form. Millett found joy not just in the act of stitching, but in the puzzle of design: arranging fabric, shapes and colors into something visually compelling.
Invigorated with the spirit of creating from scraps, Millett found that quilting satisfied his desire for a creative outlet separate from his day job at an agriculture company in Des Moines. He rents a space in Mainframe Studios, where he pursues his art passionately.
In Millett’s hands, a quilt becomes more than a textile; it becomes a statement. The themes of his world are proudly and openly queer, drawing from the personal and political.
Hanky Code is a quilt inspired by a system of color-coded bandanas placed in back pants pockets, used by gay men starting in the ’70s to signal sexual preferences. At first glance, the quilt appears to be a traditional log cabin pattern, but quickly reveals its subversive layers.
In his earliest designs, Millett only utilized machine quilting, sewing with an Elna 720Pro, and then quilting with a Handi Quilter Moxie and Pro-Stitcher Lite.
Holding a doctorate in plant pathology, Millett’s two worlds overlap in his design process. Using a method learned working in the lab with potatoes, he formulates patterns in situ, “in the real world,” and in silico, on the computer. Typically, he composes the pieces online, finding fabrics to match the hex codes, and bringing them to life through the sewing machine. But this process is not rigid; sometimes, Millett’s process is entirely in situ, assembled physically.
Millett hand stitches some selected pieces, finding charm and originality in the human flaws. This is evident in Hanky Code — Millett’s hand embroidery runs around the quilt in different patterns, creating a cohesive jumble of variety.
Not Everyone Wears a Rainbow is all white, with “LGBTQ” and the names of various queer identities stitched in rows of block letters. When light is shined through the rainbow-printed backing fabric, a flood of colors seeps through.
‘Not Everyone Wears Rainbow’ as a work in progress. — courtesy of Ben Millett 
Ben Millett’s machine stitches his ‘Progress Pride Stars’ quilt. — courtesy of the artist 
Ben Millett manually sews the backing on his ‘Not Everyone Wears Rainbow’ piece. — courtesy of the artist 
‘Midsommar (Dani)’ prior to assembly. — courtesy of Ben Millett 
Ben Millett’s ‘It’s Electric!’ jacket as a work in progress. — courtesy of the artist
A series of quilts titled If I Had Said Yes serves as the exhibition’s emotional centerpiece: a sprawling wall of nearly two dozen mini quilts, each one a variation on a shared theme. Limited color palettes and repeated shapes are reimagined in infinite combinations, exploring roads not taken, decisions deferred, moments of doubt and what might have been. Together, they tell a story not of one life, but of all the paths that split and spiral from a single point of possibility.
Millett’s pieces aren’t just wall-bound. Several quilted garments appear throughout the exhibit, often referencing pop culture or cinema. Two sweatshirts nod to the unsettling beauty of Midsommar, the 2019 Ari Aster horror film that explores grief, rebirth and collective ritual. Another piece is a hand-stitched book called The Book of Benjamin, inspired by the illuminated manuscripts of The Book of Kells, reworking lyrics from formative songs into poetic stanzas, bordered by needlework.
His palette is deliberately bold: pinks, yellows, acid green and other colors drawn from the Progress Pride flag’s 11 hues.
“Before I came out, the colors I gravitated towards were more subdued; I didn’t want to draw attention to myself,” Millett explained. “After I came out, I’ve been more excited with brighter colors. I’ve been out for 11 years now, and I’m still figuring things out — as I work on quilts, I use a lot of that time to process my own thoughts.”
In Millett’s practice, language is omnipresent. Each element, color, form and texture serves as a means of expression. A quilt can be soft yet fierce, quiet yet defiant.
Quilting is deeply rooted in Iowa history, particularly the heirloom quilts crafted by immigrant women. But Millett, as a gay male quiltmaker, is a small statistic in a space that has long been viewed as rural, domestic and female-coded. His work challenges those assumptions, not through rejection, but through expansion.
“Iowa Artists 2025: Ben Millett” is more than an exhibition. It’s a celebration of what textiles can do, of what stories they can tell, and of how something as familiar as a quilt can become radical art.
Admission to the Des Moines Art Center is free.
Upcoming event:
“Iowa Artists 2025: Ben Millett” Opening Ceremony, Friday, July 25, 5-7 p.m., Des Moines Art Center, Richard Meier building, Free
This article was originally published in Little Village’s July 2025 issue.
