Join us in Durham, NC, for a time of sisterhood, exploration and fun during Juneteenth weekend, June 15–17, 2023. Featuring a variety of workshops from some of the top quilting professionals in the country and a pop-up quilt show, this event is an opportunity to explore African American quilting, network and celebrate the legacy of Juneteenth. Note that the conference is designed for individuals who identify as African American. The public is welcome to attend the pop-up quilt show, “Deconstructing the Mammy Archetype Through African American Art Quiltwork” (Exhibition + Reception) on Friday, June 16, from 6:00 – 9:00 at The Fruit, 305 S Dillard St., Durham, NC.
Kindred Spirits Schedule
Thursday, June 15
1:00-6:00 | Registration Quilt Installation | |
Dinner on Your Own | ||
6:30-9:00 | Get to Know You Mixer/Photographs With Your Quilt | |
Friday, June 16 | ||
8:00-9:00 | Late Registration Quilt Submission | |
9:00-12:00 | Cookie Washington/Candace Thomas, asst “African Pillow” Kena Dorsey “Diversity Day” | Room 1/ Warehouse Room 2/ Theater |
12:30-1:30 | Lunch Panel: Dr. Renee’ Anderson & Marshall Price | Bottling Co |
1:45-4:45 | Aisha Lumumba “Scrappy Lady” Kianga Jinaki “Market Woman” | Room 1/ Warehouse Room 2/ Theater |
5:00-6:00 | Dinner on your own* | |
6:00-9:00 | Quilt Show: “Deconstructing the Mammy Archetype Through African American Art Quiltwork” (Exhibition + Reception) Remarks begin at 7:00 | |
Saturday, June 17 | ||
8:00-9:00 | Early Departure Quilt De-Install | |
9:00-12:00 | Kianga Jinaki “Market Woman” Aisha Lumumba “Scrappy Lady” | Room 1/ Warehouse Room 2/ Theater |
12:15-1:45 | Lunch Panel: Workshop Leaders | Bottling Co |
2:00-5:00 | Kena Dorsey “Iyanla” Cookie Washington/Candace Thomas, asst “African Pillow” | Room 1/ Warehouse Room 2/ Theater |
5:00-6:00 | Quilt De-Install and Departure | |
* | nearby restaurants include Mezcalito and Krill. |
Kena Dorsey:
Group 2, Friday morning: “Diversity Day”
Group 1, Saturday afternoon: “Iyanla”
Both workshops are raw edge appliqué Wall hanging using African Fabrics. Kits available.
Kiange Jinaki: Join fiber artist Kianga Jinaki in creating your very own Woman of the Market quilt. Using her original design and signature slow stitching as a starting point, this quilt involves both machine piecing, appliqué and hand/ machine quilting. Kianga will bring a rich collection of African handmade textiles and beads to incorporate in your 16” x 30” creation. This three hour class will be offered once on Friday and once on Saturday.
Aisha Lumumba: “Scrappy Lady.” You can make a beautiful Scrappy art quilt in this workshop by Aisha Lumumba. The Scrappy Lady has turned scrap collecting into a fast and fun project. Many quilters have experienced the satisfaction of recycling and reusing their scrap collection into a lovely lady with a beautiful full flowing scrappy dress. Class uses the techniques taught in the Scrap Easy book by Ms. Lumumba. If you save scraps from your projects this workshop is for you.
Cookie Washington: Create an African Fabric Cathedral Window Appliqué Pillow 20 x 24 inches square.
Cookie’s Make and Take class will build the confidence of even a novice quilter. In just 3 hours she will guide you through an approachable fun quilting and appliqué lesson that will have you leaving with a beautiful completed pillow cover and the skills to turn this into a technique into a full size quilt as you go quilt in a weekend.
Cookie will provide a kit and pattern and a few fun bonuses.
Students must supply their own sewing machine, rotary cutter and mat.
After we receive your conference registration we’ll send you information for workshop registration.
We hope you will bring a Deconstructing the Mammy Archetype quilt for our pop-up quilt show, which will be on display for attendees during the quilt conference from June 15-17. The public may view the quilt show on June 16 during our Third Friday celebration of Juneteenth from 6:00-9:00 pm. Opening remarks will begin at 7.
Quilt dimensions: Maximum 15 inches wide and 60 inches length, thus allowing you to bring the quilt in your luggage or carry-on. Please feel free to bring a larger quilt from your own collection.
Deadline for notifying us of your quilt dimensions: June 1, 2023. Once we receive your conference registration, we’ll send a followup email to gather the name and size of your quilt, either from your own stash or one created for the Deconstructing the Mammy Archetype quilt show at the conference. We’ll also include other details about the quilt show. Sign up for the quilt show at this link.
Quilt Show Theme
The Mammy archetype is a stereotypical portrayal of black women in American popular culture. It is a caricature of a nurturing, maternal figure who is often depicted as overweight, asexual, and happily serving white people. The Mammy stereotype has been used to justify the enslavement and subjugation of black women and has been perpetuated through various forms of media.
Modern African American quilt work provides an avenue for deconstructing the Mammy archetype. Quilting has long been a form of creative expression for African American women, and in recent years, many black artists have used the medium to challenge and subvert racist stereotypes.
By incorporating imagery and symbolism that directly confronts the Mammy archetype, African American quilt makers are able to reframe the narrative and reclaim our own agency. For example, some artists have created quilts that depict black women as strong and independent, rather than subservient and obedient. Others have used quilting to celebrate the beauty and diversity of black women’s bodies, challenging the notion that black women must conform to Eurocentric beauty standards.
Additionally, some artists have used quilting to highlight the contributions of black women to American society. For example, Harriet Powers, an enslaved African American woman from Georgia, created a series of quilts that depicted scenes from her own life, as well as biblical stories and African folklore. Her work was a powerful testament to the resilience and creativity of black women, despite the constraints of slavery.
Overall, modern African American quilt work offers a powerful means of deconstructing the Mammy archetype and challenging the ways in which black women have been historically misrepresented in American culture. By using the medium of quilting to tell our own stories and celebrate our own experiences, black women are able to reclaim narratives and assert our own agency.
Register here: Kindred Spirits Conference
Cost: Equity: $125 ; Standard: $175 ; Pay It Forward: $225. (Includes conference, reception, and two lunches. Does not include lodging.)
Scholarships also available. Contact info@rcwms.org.
Lodging: We have arranged a block of rooms at the nearby Springhill Suites. You may book your rooms online at this link. Please note you must reserve your rooms by May 14 in order to receive the special rate.
We are offering Sliding Scale registration with Equity and Pay It Forward pricing. The opportunity to choose among several price options is an experiment in equitable pricing. We’re confident that those who join us are committed to being part of a creative crew that is diverse, committed to economic justice, and ready to explore new models for supporting each other (because the old models are unsupportable). Read more below to determine where you fall on the sliding scale.
Do You Qualify for Equity Pricing? Can You Pay It Forward?
Equity seats are limited and reserved for those with less economic privileges.
Please be mindful that if you purchase a ticket at the lowest end of the scale when you can truthfully afford the higher ticket prices, you limit access to those who truly need the gift of financial flexibility. Likewise if you are able and choose to Pay-It-Forward, more Equity Seats are made available.
When engaging with sliding scale practices, being honest with yourself and your financial situation grows solid and sustainable communities. It also respects the work of teachers and creators, who may be sole providers or have families to support and a mortgage or rent to pay. When creators are paid fairly, we can invest more time and resources in free and lower-cost offerings.
If you struggle to maintain access to needs such as health care, housing, food, child care, and are living paycheck to paycheck or are in significant debt, you probably belong here and you deserve a community that honors your price as equal an economical offering as the person who can pay the highest tier. Even when the lower tier is still prohibitive, we will work with folks to offer other solutions.
Source: Embracing an Equity Sliding Scale (link: https://embracingequity.org/blog/2018/11/29/embracing-an-equitable-sliding-scale)
All participants will take a workshop from each teacher, so you’ll need to bring supplies for four different classes.
Local Activities, including bonuses for conference participants: Pop-Up Show for African Fabric From 3:30 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, Brother Haneef Saleem has offered a pop-up show for African fabric. His shopping spot is a city favorite for African American quilters. He has mad fabric, clothing and other African-inspired merchandise. It is within walking distance from the Spring Hill Suites by Marriott Durham City View. Mama Toni Hall will work the event for Brother Haneef. Lots are sold in 6- and 12-yard bolts. Bring a friend and split the cost! Basement of the Hayti Heritage Center 804 Old Fayetteville St, Durham, NC 27701 The Scrap Exchange The Scrap Exchange offers a treasure trove of stuff, including fabric. You’ll want one in your own city! It is a quick Lyft or Uber ride from The Fruit or the hotel (Spring Hill Suites by Marriott Durham City View). The Scrap Exchange is offering a discount coupon (check your swag bag) and some fabric to purchase by the bag. You will love it! Lakewood Shopping Center 2050 Chapel Hill Rd, Durham, NC 27707 For information, call 919-200-0151. Freeman’s Creative Freeman’s Creative is also located in the Lakewood Shopping Center. Amelia Freeman is offering a discount to all participants in the Kindred Spirits Conference. Just show your name tag / badge! Her shop is lovely and she has a wide variety of supplies that a good quilter needs. Amelia and her shop are very good friends of our conference. Lakewood Shopping Center 2020 Chapel Hill Rd #25, Durham, NC 27707 For information, call 919-402-9777. North Carolina Juneteenth Celebration Juneteenth is in full bloom in Durham on Saturday, June 17th. The annual North Carolina Juneteenth Celebration, officially sanctioned by the National Juneteenth Observance Foundation, is now a two-day event … and it has a new location! The 18th Annual North Carolina Juneteenth Celebration will take place in Durham, NC on: Saturday, June 17, 2023, from 1-10 pm, & Sunday, June 18, 2023, from 12-6 pm. Presented by Spectacular Magazine and Triangle Cultural Awareness Foundation. The Golden Belt Campus 800 Taylor St, Durham, NC 27701 Rofhiwa Book Café Rofhiwa is a Black-owned independent Bookcafé that strives to reflect the expansiveness of the black imagination and values books as repositories for collective knowledge. Rofhiwa endeavors to foster a spirit of heightened engagement by curating a living, active, and affective collection of books that capture the dexterity of black writers across classic and contemporary works. Old East Durham 406 S Driver St, Durham, NC 27703 For information, call 919-391-8945. Nearby restaurants: Walking Distance: Mezcalito: Mexican. 706 Ramseur St. Krill: Southeast Asian. 506 Ramseur St Ponysaurus: Beer and Pizza. Corner of Ramseur and Fayetteville Sts. Downtown: Luna: South American. 112 W Main St. Queeny’s: Burgers & Salad & More. 321 E. Chapel St. Alley Twenty Six: Upscale Cocktails & Food.320 E. Chapel Hill St. Geer Street Garden: Down Home Food and Drinks. 644 Foster St. More info coming soon. |
Durham is booming and there is a fair amount of local construction near the Fruit, making it challenging to find parking. Please allow extra time, consider carpooling or hopping in an Uber or Lyft from your hotel.
There is very limited paid on-street parking on Dillard, Ramseur, and 2 side streets off Ramseur – Elizabeth St and Hood St. Some of the parking on these side streets may be free.
There are a few spots in gravel lots on the south and east sides of the Fruit. We expect those will fill quickly.
Parking Garage options:
1) Bull House Apartments, 504 E Pettigrew St. Two minute walk.
2) Justice Center, 502 S. Dillard St. Five minute walk.
Night parking: The surface lot across Ramseur St. from The Fruit can be used at night. The lot is bordered by Dillard, Ramseur, and Elizabeth Streets. The ONLY entrance is on Elizabeth Street.
More info coming soon.