The March Quilts Year 6— Responding to The Lynch Quilts Project (2020)
Year 6: Responding to The Lynch Quilts Project
Year six of TMQ was based on reactions to a presentation, two workshops, and an exhibit of visiting artist LaShawnda Crowe Storm’s The Lynch Quilts Project. Bib & Tucker was first inspired by the Jefferson County Memorial Project (JCMP), a grassroots coalition that formed to do research and education for the placement of historical markers at lynching sites. Ms. Crowe Storm’s Lynch Quilts Project is also based on research and education.
LaShawnda Crowe Storm and The Lynch Quilts Project:
During her residency, LaShawnda Crowe Storm engaged participants in a workshop that touched on the traumas of lynching. Some participants were reminded that modern versions of lynching still occur, while others shared and spoke about personal traumas.
During the second workshop, participants created blocks for the eighth quilt in Ms. Crowe Storm’s project named “Lawrence and His Sisters.” Fabrics which would evoke boyhood in the 1910’s were used to form a border around the main subject, the lynched body of 12-year-old Lawrence Nelson.
Shortly after Ms. Crowe Storm’s visit came the murders of Ahmad Arbury, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. Their deaths reiterated the vast inequalities across safety, policing, and economics. Furthermore, the Covid-19 crisis underlined inequalities within healthcare.
Participants of Ms. Crowe Storm’s workshops drew upon their experiences or what they witnessed across the country to create blocks for TMQ6. A color palette mimicking the one chosen by Ms. Crowe Storm was used to assemble TMQ6. Because the projects are directly linked, the letters “LQP” were pieced and placed in the corner of TMQ6.
Learn More about LaShawnda Crowe Storm and The Lynch Quilts Project.