Book Review: All That She Carried
I recently read All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley’s Sack, A Black Family Keepsake by Tiya Miles as part of MAFA’s Book Club like a voracious bear. The book tells the powerful story of a simple cotton sack passed down through generations of Black women, starting with Rose, who gave it to her daughter Ashley before they were separated by slavery. The sack, filled with a few precious items and Rose’s love, became a family keepsake that represents resilience, survival, and maternal love.
What struck me most is how Miles uses this one object to explore the broader legacy of slavery and the ways Black women preserved their families’ stories and histories through small, meaningful acts. The book’s detailed research into Pecans ties back to the current research I am doing on Provision Grounds and really gave me some direction on how I want to craft the storytelling in my own project. It’s a reminder that objects can carry so much more than their physical form—they hold memories, connections, and emotions that transcend time.
This book made me think deeply about the significance of the materials we use and the stories they carry, something I relate to in my own creative practice. If you’re looking for a moving exploration of history, family, and resilience, I highly recommend this book.
History of Denim
Blue jeans have a history deeply rooted in slavery, as the fabric used to make them—denim—was originally produced from cotton grown by enslaved people in the American South. Cotton was one of the primary crops cultivated on plantations using forced labor, and the profits from this industry fueled the global textile trade. Additionally, enslaved people often wore durable, rugged fabrics like denim, providing the blueprint for the hard-wearing, utilitarian nature of blue jeans. Thus, while today blue jeans symbolize casual, everyday wear, their origins are intertwined with the exploitation and suffering of enslaved Black laborers.
Sneak Peek Beyond: Tapestry Expanded
Step into Beyond: Tapestry Expanded and experience Blackity Black Blanket Ladders, a powerful visual statement on resilience and protection. Crafted from commercial fishing nets and black zip ties, these striking ladders symbolize the climb out of racial gaslighting and into self-empowerment.
American Tapestry Association’s Beyond: Tapestry Expanded
Exhibition Dates: August 26- December 15Location: Peeler Art Center at DePauw University; 204 E. Seminary St., Greencastle IN
Embrace: Expect the Unexpected
Im so pleased to share that, The Great Resignation Emotional Baggage Cart is featured in the Fall 2024 Surface Design Journal: Embrace: Expect the Unexpected, SDA International Exhibition in Print!
Emotional Baggage Cart Parade Kicks Off Today
Join me this weekend for The Emotional Baggage Cart Parade at the CARE Art in Odd Places Festival! This unique public art experience invites you to witness and engage with a visual metaphor for the emotional burdens we all carry. I’ll be roaming the streets with my transformed shopping carts, offering an interactive opportunity to explore and release your own emotional baggage.
Catch me at the following times and locations:
- Friday, October 18: 12:00-2:00pm, roaming Avenue A to 3rd Avenue along 14th Street
- Saturday, October 19: 12:00-2:00pm, roaming University Place/Union Square West to 7th Avenue along 14th Street
- Sunday, October 20: 12:00-2:00pm, roaming Seventh Avenue to Eleventh Avenue or the water along 14th Street
Come say hello and experience this moving installation as we transform emotional weight into art. See you there!
Artwalk NY 2024
ARTWALK NY brings together hundreds of artists, art-lovers, and other compassionate New Yorkers to celebrate the role of “artist-as-activist,” to raise awareness about the crisis of mass homelessness and to support programs that directly help homeless individuals and families. The vibrant live and silent auctions and lively cocktail reception have drawn crowds of prominent guests for over 25 years, and in 2024, features the works of over 60 influential and emerging artists.
This year, ARTWALK NY will feature my piece titled Embody Queendom (2022) in the charity event. As a artist, I love to support worthy causes with my work, as a collector I love charity auctions for the opportunity to snatch up works from other artists at cost. So don’t miss out on this opportunity to grow your collection and support a worthy cause.
ARTWALK NY will also honor Katherine Bradford as the 2024 Artist Honoree and Aileen Agopian for her philanthropic contributions to Coalition for the Homeless.
Key details
October 21st, 2024
Chelsea Factory
547 West 26th Street NYC
6:00 pm – VIP Reception
7:00 pm – Cocktail Party and Silent Auction Open
7:30 pm – Live Auction and Award Ceremony
About Coalition for the Homeless
The Coalition for the Homeless provides emergency food and clothing, eviction prevention, crisis services, permanent housing, job training and special programs for kids to over 3,500 people a day. Since 1981, we have given more than one million homeless New Yorkers a way off the streets.
Inspired by Joyce J. Scott
When I saw Joyce J. Scott‘s Garden Ensconced at the Armory Show, I was completely blown away. I was drawn in from a distance and completely enraptured by the detail of her beading.
Detail view.
Garden Ensconced
Medium: Sculpture, Plastic and glass beads, yarn, fabric, crocheted fiber, ribbon, stainless steel
Size: 124.25 x 93 x 6.25 in.
Year: 2024
Inspired by Haute Couture Macrame
This fusion of traditional artistry and contemporary aesthetics reimagines macramé as wearable art, celebrating creativity, texture, and form, while pushing the boundaries of fiber and fashion.
Mahogany Limbs For Me
Big thanks to McCarty for spotting that Facebook post about two long-downed mahogany tree limbs, each about 10 inches in diameter at the base. We’ve got a truck and a chainsaw—time to go collect them! In the meantime, I’ve been journaling some art ideas in my sketchbook, filling the pages with doodles and freehand stream-of-consciousness writing. Watch this space to see what unfolds!
