From the Quilt Alliance: "The Ardis James QSOS Scholars program funds educational and creative work that makes use of the Quilters’ Save Our Stories archive of more than 1,200 recorded oral histories with quiltmakers. This year, we had a tremendous response from artists, researchers, writers and scholars proposing a range of projects. We are excited to announce that this year’s Ardis James QSOS Scholars are..." Was it you or someone you know? Click through to find out who was awarded.

And the 2024 Ardis James QSOS Scholars are:

Ashley Jane Lewis and Carey Flack - Technologies of Black Care Collective

The Technologies of Black Care Collective will host MEMORY PATTERN, a collaborative 4 week quilting project in tribute to Black textile communities of the past, present and future.

Facilitated by artist, archivist and speculative design duo Ashley Jane Lewis and Carey J Flack, 30 selected participants will meet weekly on Zoom to co-create a cross-national quilt while ruminating on the oral and written history of Daughters of Dorcas, the oldest Black quilt guild in North America.

MEMORY PATTERN will draw especially on excerpts from the 2002 QSOS interview with Viola Canady.

Stephanie Dyke

Stephanie’s proposed project dovetails with her recent work studying Dr. William Rush Dunton Jr.’s quilt collection, and use of handcraft as occupational therapy for his mentally ill patients in the early- and mid-1900s. She will create a 3-dimensional, multimedia, quilted piece which will utilize snippets of the QSOS interviews, as well as other collected interviews. The goal of the artwork and its accompanying media will be to highlight the effectiveness of handwork in managing mental and emotional health, as well as educating and inspiring current and future needleworkers.

Stephanie’s project will use QSOS excerpts focused on how quilting helps interviewees through difficult times, such as illness or grief.

Look for more about both projects coming soon to the Quilt Alliance website. Ashley, Carey and Stephanie will present their work online and at a free Textile Talk this July – stay tuned for more details. We can’t wait to hear how these projects develop, and look forward to sharing this work with you all soon!

Congratulations Ashley, Carey, and Stephanie on receving the 2024 Ardis James QSOS Scholarships.

PLEASE NOTE: The application process for the 2024 scholarships is now over. If you would like to know more about the scholarship, program, or how to apply for next year, please click the link or image below.

Click here, or the image below, to learn more about the program and application process.