“Freedom: Emancipation: Quilted & Stitched” is an exhibition of documentary-style story quilts that celebrates the contributions, lives and legacies of people of color in Maryland. The quilts are creations by fabric artist Joan M.E. Gaither, Ph.D. and include several works that consist of community collaborations facilitated by Gaither.
The experiential lives and contributions of “People of Color” are viewed in the context of smaller communities, in particular, to a broader story of slave emancipation, history and culture in Maryland.
The quilts featured in Freedom: Emancipation Quilted & Stitched are presented as collective stories connected to a continuing struggle for freedom in our shared greater American story. The work speaks to a place in many communities— telling one’s own story, telling the stories of others, and finally, helping others to find and tell their own stories within the context of one collective story.
The Reginald Lewis, which is located at 830 E Pratt Street in Baltimore City is Maryland’s largest museum focused on the state’s African American history and Culture.