near and far enemies: Shade

Over the last five years I have been researching race and racism in the United States. I began imagining and working on a series of electronic textile pieces that depict and share aspects of what I am learning. I call this series Near and Far Enemies and the first quilt of the series is entitled Shade. 

Near and Far Enemies: Shade is an electronic quilt depicting a relationship between tree growth, property laws, and racism within Baltimore.  It is inspired by Dr. Mindy Fullilove’s statement about how the largest shade trees of a city grow in neighborhoods today that were areas of increased funding 80 years ago, the blue/green zones of racially motivated “red-lining” maps.  The quilt includes imagery of 75 randomly selected trees in Baltimore and their locations on the 1930‘s red-lining maps (Residential Security Maps).  Conductive fabric, thread, LEDs and imbedded electronics animate the connections between the trees and their locations on the map.