The Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Endustriels Modernes, held in Paris in 1925, dramatically changed the decorative arts in Europe and in America with the introduction of the Art Deco style. By the end of the 1920s, Art Deco was influencing industry, fashion, and home furnishings, its geometric lines and harsh symmetry replacing the graceful curves of Art Nouveau. The Art Deco designs adapted for quilts tended to incorporate straight lines, hard edges, and motifs of zigzags, rays of light, and checkerboards. This feeling of power, or what has been called art imitating machines rather than nature, can be seen in this quilt. It is believed to have been inspired by a military decoration of the Napoleonic era and was made from a purchased kit, pattern number 151, from H. Ver Mehren's Home Art Studios of Des Moines, Iowa. The firm's catalogs offered all the material needed for the top and border, ready-stamped on four shades of sateen, gingham, or inexpensive cleona cloth, with prices ranging from $3.50 to $5.95. A quilt made in this pattern won a regional first prize and was a finalist in the Sears "Century of Progress" quilt contest at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair.

Stacy C. Hollander, "Star of France Quilt," in American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 372.