• Rosie Lee Tompkins: Untitled, c. 1996; found and repurposed cotton T-shirts, silk or polyester neckties, cotton knit, acrylic yarn, cotton embroidery, polyester knit, polyester backing; 61 × 71 in.; BAMPFA, bequest of the Eli Leon Living Trust.

  • Ora Clay. Photo: Toni Bird

  • Carolyn Mazloomi. Photo: Rezvan Mazloomi

  • Elaine Yau. Photo: Katie Cleese Photography

Livestream: Among Quilters: Carolyn Mazloomi and Ora Clay on Rosie Lee Tompkins

Join two leading quilt artists as they reflect on the work of Rosie Lee Tompkins and on their own practices, and explore shared themes of storytelling, spirituality, family, and community.

Dr. Carolyn Mazloomi is an acclaimed quilt artist, author, historian, and curator whose work has been widely exhibited in the United States and internationally. In 2014 she received the National Endowment for the Humanities National Heritage Award, the nation’s highest award for traditional art. Among her many publications is Spirits of the Cloth, awarded Best Nonfiction Book of the Year by the American Library Association.

Oakland-based quilter and fabric artist Ora Clay has exhibited her work locally and nationally. She uses photographs, popular block patterns, and her own designs, often to tell stories and address issues of social justice.

Elaine Yau, Associate Curator of the Eli Leon Living Trust Collection of African American Quilts at BAMPFA, moderates.