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

Joan Levine Freedman ‘57 and Richard I. Freedman Gallery

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