Fabric Memorials – Uvalde

Artist Statement

My artwork evolved out of a convergence of global, personal, and national events. By March 2020 the coronavirus had become a worldwide pandemic. Confined and seeking a time-intensive activity, I bought a sewing machine and began learning to use it.

Breonna Taylor was killed by police that month, as was George Floyd shortly thereafter, igniting widespread commemorations and expanding the movement known as Black Lives Matter. These and other national events became subject matter for my artwork.

Quilting with appliqué techniques seemed a perfect choice for making art during trying times. The wall-mounted hangings are constructed in layered cotton fabric. Because quilted comforters are familiar and approachable, the medium is ideal for addressing provocative topics related to social justice and inequality. Most specifically, my work confronts the horror and folly of gun violence in its various forms.

These quilted wall hangings recall the spontaneous memorials that communities erect after untimely deaths. A recent body of work, titled “Fabric Memorials – Uvalde,” celebrates the lives of the nineteen children killed in a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24, 2022. Each piece is personalized by special information related to the ten-year-old subject. For example, Tess holds her beloved Siamese cat Oliver. Ellie and Jailah pose in their cheerleading outfits. Uziah, who loved video games, is portrayed in a setting resembling the Gorilla Tag background. Each artwork is decorated with flowers, balloons, or teddy bears.

Captions accompany each portrait in the series to further individualize the children:

“Maite Yuleana Rodriquez dreamed of going to Texas A&M University- Corpus Christi to study marine biology. On the day of the shooting, Maite was wearing her favorite shoes. It was that pair of size five, lime green Converse by which she was later identified.” Another caption reads: “During the shootings at Robb Elementary, Amerie Jo Garza repeatedly called 911 on the new phone she had received for her birthday. She was posthumously awarded the Bronze Cross by Girl Scouts of USA. This highest honor is given for saving or attempting to save life at the risk of the Girl Scout’s own life.”

I consider artmaking to be a form of activism. “Fabric Memorials – Uvalde” is meant to evoke our collective outrage at ineffectual gun laws.