What do you expect to see when you visit Biscayne National Park in South Florida? Spectacular blue waters, of course. Dolphins, coral reefs, shipwrecks, mangrove trees, shorebirds ... maybe even a manatee if you're lucky. But quilts? You might not think this marine wonderland is the place to experience creative textiles addressing one of the biggest social issues of our time.
Yet that’s exactly what the park put on display earlier this week in a gallery at the Dante Fascell Visitor Center (the park’s headquarters on the mainland at Convoy Point).
The new exhibit, Piecing Together a Changing Planet, features 26 varied and innovative quilts by Florida artists on the subject of how climate change and other human-caused phenomena are affecting America’s national parks. A curious intersection of nature, social justice, and craft, the quilts are an exciting contribution to the tradition of using art to inspire change.
Below is a sampling of the quilts on display. Click to see larger versions of these images.
“Pink Ladies” by Melani K. Brewer.
“You’ve Got Brains” by Maya Schonenberger.
“Denial” by Gabriele Ditota.
“Rising Tide: We Have Been Warned” by Suzanne Evenson.
“Wings” by Melani K. Brewer.
“Carbon Fingerprint” by Barbara Watler.
The exhibit is open and free to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day until February 27. The show will then travel to nine other national parks over the next two years.
About the author
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Jennifer Errick Associate Director of Digital StorytellingJennifer co-produces NPCA's podcast, The Secret Lives of Parks, and writes and edits a wide variety of online content. She has won multiple awards for her audio storytelling.
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