I am a genetic quilt. I am a body made of my ancestors’ genetic codes that have been stitched together into me. Those codes helped my body and mind grow, develop, learn, love, laugh, cry, mourn and rejoice. Their genetic quilts have become family mythologies. As my grandparents told me stories about their grandparents, those mythologies become part of my fabric. My mind holds onto those stories, and through time, I cut and patch them back together. They get altered but still help define who that ancestor is and help me understand my genetic make-up.
I started exploring these fabric pieces several years ago. I planned to create a video installation, but the work just didn’t feel right. It wasn’t correct. It wasn’t my fabric, so I started over. I decided to approach this using the artistic tools I know and the visual language I use to create and define my stories. In the end, I created diptych symbols to represent many of the mythologies and fabric pieces of my forebearers based on the stories I remember and know. Each is a quilt of sorts, made from photographic imagery, snapped or scanned, then digitally stitched, printed, and in many instances, embroidered with graphite or ink drawings.
Their genetic codes have helped me to become an intelligent, strong-willed, opinionated, and creative human. Their mythologies have helped me connect with them as people, rejoice in their triumphs, failures, challenges, and lives. They are me. They are why I am an artist.
For my father.
The Corner of St. Paul and Central in Wichita, KS, Facing South; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
The Corner of St. Paul and Central in Wichita, KS, Facing North; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
My Great Grandfather, the Barnstormer, Ver 2.0; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2020
Ticket to Ride; Pigment print with ink drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
Steady, like a Clock; Pigment print with ink and graphite drawings; 24 x 18 inches; © 2021
My Darlings; Pigment print with graphite drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
He Rejected Mensa; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
He Could Fly Before He Could Drive; Pigment print with graphite drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
...I'll Have You Know; Pigment print with graphite drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
She Was Slightly Diabetic; Pigment print with ink and graphite drawings; 24 x 18 inches; © 2021
A Gentleman's Gallery; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2020
Within These Walls, Beauty Was Made; Pigment print; 24 x 18 inches; © 2020
The Second of Three Collaborative Masterpieces; Pigment print; 24 x 18 inches; ©2021
Patchwork Hug No. 1; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches: © 2020
Patchwork Hug No. 2; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches: © 2020
The Hidden Suitcase Never Shared with Her Daughter; Pigment print; 24 x 18 inches; © 2020
Similar to Grandma's, or Where I Learned to Sew; Pigment print; 24 x 18 inches; © 2020
The Carpenters of Eden No. 2; Pigment print with graphite drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
The Carpenters of Eden No. 1; Pigment print with graphite drawing; 24 x 18 inches; © 2021
Bowl of Love; Pigment print with ink drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
Feeding Bear; Pigment print with ink drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
Childhood Play Things; Pigment print with ink drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
The Back 40; Pigment print and ink drawing; 24 x 18 inches; © 2021
Arthritis Never Stopped Her; Pigment print; 24 x 18 inches; © 2020
This is Where She Learned to Sew; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2020
Morris Homestead; Pigment print with ink drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
Sliced-up Inheritance; Pigment print with ink drawing; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
I Am More Than Wife No. 19; Pigment print; 24 x 18 inches; © 2021
Immigrant & Defiant; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
He Hid Out Here No. 1; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
He Hid Out Here No. 2; Pigment print; 18 x 24 inches; © 2021
Each Diptych (or how to hang the exhibition)
William H. & Cora Mae Lash Crawford
George “Jack” Earl Crawford
Elvina Minor Crawford Smith
Donald George Crawford
Joan Gardner Lewis
George Joe Crawford
The Second of Three Collaborative Masterpieces; Pigment print; 24 x 18 inches; ©2021
Jennie E. Morris Crawford
Jennie Rebecca Carpenter Morris
William and Eliza Branham Carpenter
Juanita Dyal Morris
George Elton Morris
Elena Ellsworth Morris
George Albert Morris
Ann Gorge Lee Kennedy
John Doyle Lee
The Mythologies
