Soulful Stitching: Patchwork Quilts by Africans (Siddis) in India

The Siddis of Karnataka are the descendants of early African immigrants to South Asia and enslaved Africans brought to India’s west coast from the 16th century. While they have adopted, adapted, and integrated many aspects of Indian cultures, Siddis have also retained and transformed African traditions. In the visual arts, one stands out: the patchwork quilts known as kawandi.

This exhibition is co-curated by Henry J. Drewal, Evjue-Bascom Professor of African and African Diaspora Arts at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Sarah K. Khan, and organized for the Davis Museum by Assistant Curator Amanda Gilvin.

Soulful Stitching will be on display in the Joan Levine Freedman ’57 and Richard I. Freedman Gallery until June 10. The museum is closed on Mondays.

Presented with generous support from Wellesley College Friends of Art at the Davis.

Image Caption: Shanta Mingel, Kawandi (Quilt), Cotton and Other Textiles, 2005-6.
Image Credit: Courtesy of the artist, the Siddi Women’s Quilting Cooperative, and Henry J. Drewal and Sarah K. Khan L.2017.9.9.