Vision Quilt in SAQA's Three-Year Traveling Exhibition

Vision Quilt in SAQA’s Traveling Exhibition

Vision Quilt is featured in the upcoming Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) exhibition, Guns: Loaded Conversations. The exhibition premieres on April 20th at the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles, with an opening reception on April 22nd. A traveling exhibition, Guns: Loaded Conversations will be exhibited around the country for the next three years.

We’re pleased to announce that Vision Quilt’s short film focused on our work at Lighthouse Community Charter School was selected for inclusion in the SAQA exhibition. The students created Vision Quilt panels and then organized a community exhibition in downtown Oakland, California, as part of their three-month unit focused on gun violence. ​​

The intention of Guns: Loaded Conversations is to spark conversation and make bridges across an often polarized conversation. “Artists have been a catalyst for difficult societal conversations throughout history,” says the exhibition website. “Guns: Loaded Conversations seeks to engage viewers of differing opinions to listen to each other and to encourage community initiatives that may inspire action in seeking solutions.”

We hope to see you at the exhibition opening later this month or at an exhibition near you! ​

Updates from Chicago and Portland

Our director, Cathy DeForest, has returned from her trip to Chicago, where she met with many brilliant community members, activists, and other leaders focused on preventing gun violence.

A highlight of the Chicago trip was the Vision Quilt workshop held with Valerie Goodloe at the ARK of St. Sabina, an important community center overseen by Father Michael Pfleger. Valerie's program, W.I.N.D.O.W. (Women In Need Of Discovering Own Worth) integrated Vision Quilt into the ARK's five month mentoring program for girls ages 13-17. At the ARK workshop, many of the participating youth had just returned from the March For Our Lives rally in Washington, D.C.

Father Pfleger and Arne Duncan, the former US Secretary of Education, along with community activist Pam Bosley, reached out to the Parkland youth after the mass shooting there. At the invitation of Emma Gonzalez's mom, teens from Chicago's South Side visited Parkland, where the two groups formed a strong connection. The Chicago youth then invited the Parkland youth to visit Chicago; the New York Times produced a powerful short film about this meeting. Rie'Onna Holmon, who is featured in the Times video was also a participant in the ARK's recent Vision Quilt workshop.

Later this month, Cathy DeForest will travel to Portland, Oregon, where she will participate in community workshops centered around the National School Walkout on April 20th, which commemorates 19 years since the Columbine school shooting. Cathy will also present at the Cultivating Community conference, an arts therapy conference hosted by Marylhurst University in collaboration with the Portland Creative Arts Therapies Association and Returning Veterans.