MICA Raffle Quilt Group

MICA Raffle Quilt Group Statement:

The Raffle Quilt Project originated in the MICA Fiber Department in 2015 as a gathering of students, alumni, faculty and staff working together weekly to construct a quilt to raffle to support student scholarships at MICA. In the spring of 2016, Baltimore artist (and MICA alum) Joyce Scott, introduced the African American Quilters of Baltimore’s current president, Glenda Richardson, and long-time member Rosalind Robinson to the MICA Fiber Department and the Raffle Quilt Group. Glenda Richardson and Rosalind Robinson, along with many members of their guild, have become central collaborators on these quilts, as well as excellent teachers and mentors to the MICA Raffle Quilt Project. Proceeds from the quilt raffles have been supporting African American and students of color at MICA. In 2019, Lowell Zelenka ’21 (Fiber), a key figure in the Raffle Quilt Project (since his freshman year) founded the student-run, MICA Quilt Club. The Club runs an Instagram account to promote the Raffle Quilt Project. After the Covid-19 Pandemic forced us to scatter and finish the semester remotely, we wanted to maintain our established community and our momentum, so we decided to resume the Raffle Quilt Project over Zoom and via USPS. At our weekly Zoom gathering, stitching and piecing techniques are demonstrated. Participants also share their own work during "Show and Tell" presentations. Recordings and slide shows of those demonstrations and presentations are posted and shared on a Google site available to all members of this group. Finished squares are mailed to Susie Brandt who assembles them. Over the course of the pandemic, the group has grown to more than 50 participants from Baltimore and all over the United States. They range in age from 19 to 83. Some are new to quilting while others have a great deal of experience. This Gift Basket Quilt is our ninth made since the beginning of the pandemic. Blocks for this quilt were made by:

Tobyanne Suyemoto                 Jane Khattak
Sarah Barnes                             Rosalind Robinson
Marla Parker                             Ursula Populoh
Sharone Conteh-Morgan           Nina Bova
Susie Brandt                             Julia Racicot
Dr. Denise Bailey-Jones             Dr. Lowery Sims
Audrey Naiva                            Will Grim
Glenda Richardson                    JoAnn Dixon
Andrea Dixon                            Rodette Jones
Dr. Leslie King-Hammond          Robin King
Betty Racicot                            Susan Tuberville
Erika Carruth                            Valeska Populoh