Chronicles in Cloth: Siddi Quilting is an innovative installation and community project developed in collaboration with Siddi women quilters and artist Anitha Reddy.
The Siddi of Karnataka province in India are descendants of African migrants. Quilting has long existed as a home-based activity within the community. Using fabric sourced from family members, women piece together cloth in an improvisational and intuitive method resulting in dynamic and colorful abstract compositions. In the past, quilts were not formally documented and held mainly functional value, serving practical domestic needs.
Through collaborating with Reddy for ten years, quilting has become not only a household exercise but also a conscious exploration of narrative, materiality, and self-representation. The quilts continue to document family stories and reinterpret collective memory but now engage with a deeper awareness of lived histories. What was once created for warmth and domestic use is now a space for articulating personal and collective histories through women’s hands.
Take a self-guided tour that explores textiles, abstraction, and storytelling in the Museum’s collection Bloomberg Connects
Join us for workshops and drop-in sessions to contribute to a Siddi quilt that connects Newark and Karnataka:
Chronicles in Cloth | 1-4:30 pm
Contribute to our quilt! Make a drawing or write a story on a piece of fabric. This activity is part of Chronicles in Cloth: Siddi Quilting, an innovative installation and community project in collaboration with Siddi women quilters and artist Anitha Reddy. The Siddi of Karnataka province in India are descendants of African migrants. Quilting has long existed as a home-based practice within the community. Now through a collaborative process with Reddy, it has become a platform for artistic expression. Appropriate for ages 5+
