I am honored to be a participant in Unstitched States, a collaborative quilt created by artists and writers and edited by Gretchen Henderson and Allison Dalton. The quilt is meant to serve as a humble statement of inclusivity and solidarity. It is “a testament to the principles of equality and dignity. A record of and reaction to our US in 2017; a piecing together of our future.”
On quilting, Gretchen Henderson says, “Quilting is an often overlooked craft…However, quilting summons many associations that make it an apt metaphor for this project: fostering community (through quilting circles/bees); reusing materials for functional reasons of necessity and warmth (often gifted); re-membering history and bequeathing a legacy; humility; co-creating and crafting new patterns; portable to take wherever you go (in this case across country and across borders); and often considered ‘women’s work,’ among other associations.”
In the spirit of stitching together divides, we have left blank spaces in our quilt to invite visitors to think about how they would contribute to this quilt, or even start a new quilt. However you define “community” and “quilt,” we invite you to stitch across the borders in your midst.
