Another Country is a series-in-process of quilts made out of matchbooks whose patterns are inspired by those used in the alleged Underground Railroad quilts. Each quilt is composed of hand-sewn matchbooks, often numbering in the thousands, and contain visual symbolism relating to different components of structural and institutional racism.
Begun in 2016, the project is a response to the ongoing killing of black and brown people by law enforcement and civilians with almost unanimous impunity. The matchbooks used in the quilt are created specifically for the project and bear logos referencing the locations where these tragedies occurred and unique alphanumeric codes comprised of the victims’ initials and the dates of their deaths.
Part protest, part memorial, we began the project as a way to remember the victims and keep them present. The quilts are the physical and visual manifestations of our creative process and a space of sharing. The patterns generated are the result of our desire to create and share a symbol anguage borne of a cross-culture collaboration. The body of work represents the hours of conversation we’ve had, as a Black man and White man, while working together sewing and assembling the quilts, sharing our contrasting lived experience and grappling with the real life and death consequences of racial inequality and the biased treatment of black communities by law enforcement on us individually and as a married couple. Also, and perhaps more urgently, we wanted to foreground the cultural and legal frameworks that contextualize these events and present a different way of interpreting and engaging with these difficult issues. Ten years into the process the project has evolved to exist essentially as a visual archive; artifact cyphers that hold space for reflection, prompt meaningful conversations across communities, act as instruments of placemaking and shift public perception of what a monument can be.
To learn more about the matchbooks, the victims they commemorate, or the quilt patterns and meanings, please click here .
custom souvenir matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 59.5 × 59 in
paper matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 26 × 24.5 in
paper matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 22.75 × 24.5 in
paper matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 23 × 22.5 in
paper matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 24.25 × 22.75 in
paper matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 25.75 × 23 in
detail
Eric Garner, 43 (d. 07/17/2014)
Trayvon Martin, 17 (d. 02/26/2012)
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 92in x 100in
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 92in x 100in
Permanent Collection of The International Quilt Museum, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 92in x 100in
Kendall Bessent for The New York Times
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 92in x 100in
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 92in x 100in
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 92in x 100in
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 92in x 100in
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 20 5/8in x 20 5/8in (ea. framed)
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 20 5/8in x 20 5/8in (framed)
Private Collection
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 20 5/8in x 20 5/8 (framed)
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 49 1/2” x 53 1/2”
custom souvenir matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 44 × 44 in
paper matchbooks, cotton thread, wool felt, 92in x 100in
custom matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 92 × 100 in
Kendrick Brinson for The New York Times
custom souvenir matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread
Kenyon Literary Review, Winter 2024
custom souvenir matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, 20.5 × 20.5 in
custom souvenir matchbooks, recycled felt, cotton thread, brass grommets
Unique edition of 16