I found much-needed solace in my home studio in 2020. The ongoing series called, Americana Quilts, began during the Black Live Matter protests as the Corona Virus pandemic spread. I began to look deeper into America’s history and my relationship with what was happening around me. While researching American women activists during Civil Rights, Anti-Slavery, and Suffrage movements, I discovered quilts and textiles were used to further these causes as a means of education, storytelling, record keeping, fundraising, and support, as well as being shipped to troops around the world to show support, and for banners during protests.

The Americana Quilts consist of a combination of second-hand found clothing and new cotton fabrics in varied tones attempting to translate flesh tones of the American population as well as be representative of the American landscape. My abstractions of traditional repeat patterns are meditatively sewn together by the sewing machine keeping the frayed edges of the fabric exposed. Using red thread throughout most of the series, the sewing machine acts as a drawing tool to create rhythmic flowing lines that mimic and accentuate the patterns. I use a combination of different materials as batting to create depth and texture, and then muslin as the backing.