Black Quilters' Inner Worlds Explored in New Book and Exhibition

A curator and scholar argues that Black quilts are misunderstood because viewers fail to appreciate the inner worlds of their makers. The article highlights the work of Dr. Carolyn Mazloomi, who has spent four decades with the Women of Color Quilters Network, and Dawn Williams Boyd, who describes quilting as a sanctuary. Tina Williams Brewer of Pittsburgh uses Ghanaian adinkra symbolism and African cosmologies in her work. The author's upcoming book, 'Stories in the Seams: A People's History of Black Quilts and Their Makers' (2026), examines the sovereignty, self-determination, and ancestral reverence embedded in these textiles. The piece also references the Gee's Bend quilters and the Museum of Food and Design (MOFAD) Legacy Quilt from 2020.