The SJSA Remembrance Project
#sew4justice
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SJSA Remembrance Project is a quilt block community art project that will provide activist art banners for local and national activist organizations who have requested creative statements to be publicly displayed that represent solidarity as well as remembrance. This partnership will create a visual statement to memorialize those who have been unjustly murdered by community violence (e.g. gun violence, domestic violence, child abuse, etc.) race-based violence, law enforcement, and gender or sexuality based violence. These artivism blocks will honor the lives of individuals through symbolism and portrait. Their names and identities will be displayed during community activism events reminding the world that their lives mattered.
Participating in this project involves sitting with your feelings and holding this person close as well as educating yourself to the injustices systemically and individually that impacted this person’s life. Further, it is highlighting the fact that their life mattered. People should educate themselves to understand the life beyond the name, the circumstances of their death, and be active in sharing that. Thus the intent of the project is multifaceted. On one level there is a personal awareness - this is a human being with family, friends, who had dreams and goals. Their life is and was important. There’s also an overall acknowledgement of the magnitude of this issue. When you take a step back and look at the sheer size of the exhibit you realize the tragic fact that you will run out of volunteers long before you run out of names. Therefore our audience is everyone. From activists, politicians and educators to neighbors, family, and police. We all play a role in this complex problem and until we recognize these people as valued individuals we are complicit in the injustices that continue to be perpetuated that resulted in the end of their lives. SJSA will send you the name of an individual who was murdered in a politically or racially motivated manner. You will design and create an unquilted memorial block to finish at 20”x24” (unfinished 22”x26)
The only parameters are: 1. Keep the contrast between the name and your background high. 2. While the name is mandatory we encourage you to learn more about the individual and include symbolism. 3. The name must be included in a way that it can be read from a distance. 4. Orientation of the block should be portrait (20” wide x 24” tall finished) 5. Do not quilt the block but feel free to embroider, appliqué, use fusible interfacing or glue (as long as all fabric pieces are secured to the block) 6. The blocks will be assembled into banners to be used by community organizations in public demonstrations as they work to bring attention to the injustices faced people and communities nationwide. Please reach out to Lauren, at lauren@sjsacademy.com for more information or help!
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Follow this project on instagram at @sjsa_remembrance project |