Icons of Despair

Icons of Despair came to be because I found my political voice through art quilts. I had been making quilts with faces that expressed my contempt and utter frustration with what has been happening in our country when I was invited to be in a quilt exhibit entitled “You Are My Sister”, curated by Carole Gary-Staples in Cincinnati, OH.

I felt that my faces could be seen as portraying the despair of those who are targets of or who have the felt the effects of: “Racism and Bigotry, Racial profiling, Sexism, Xenophobia, Homophobia, and  Discrimination” – the words Carole used to  delineate the “You Are My Sister” exhibit. It was my hope that in my art quilt way perhaps I could reach someone through pieces portraying the effects of those things – thus Icons of Despair.

As I have shared this work with others, comments made have included: “Icons of Despair is so evocative, a remarkable visual of the reminder to Say Their Names regularly. (George Floyd in Minneapolis, MN. Breonna Taylor in Louisville, KY. Ahmaud Arbery in Glynn County, GA. Tony McDade in Tallahassee, FL. Dion Johnson in Phoenix, AZ., and of course many others…) Religiously and socially, the Saints you drew are also Martyrs; witnessing to some hard (awful) truths about who we are as people and as a nation.” (Jim Shelton – pastor) “You gave me so much to think about as I read what you wrote and looked at your work on Facebook while also watching the funeral of John Lewis.” (fellow graduate) “Yes, the piece speaks to me. That girl in the upper left looks like my daughter as she has tried to understand prejudice and as she has fought against it.” (Matthew White – friend).