At Swarthmore with The Response To Gees Bend and the main exhibition of Mary Lee Bendolph’s quilts. This is certainly a day that The LORD meant to be! There’s no way that I belong with these folks and certainly no way I deserve to be “cuttin’ up” with Mrs. Bendolph and her sons!

I’m honored to be chosen as 1 of the 12 Quilters for this exhibition. YES, we sang hymns up in here. The Bendolph folks carry The Lord with them! Somehow, these Gees Bend, Alabama folks have it in their minds to call me “Rev. Maadus….🤨

“Front Porch Windows” by Jas. Mardis 2018

Responses to Gee’s Bend
Public Reception and Curators’ Talk
McCabe Library Atrium

Sept. 6 – Oct. 28

Installed concurrently with Piece Together: The Quilts of Mary Lee Bendolph, Responses to Gee’s Bend features works by 17 artists who were inspired by the aesthetic legacy of Gee’s Bend and created works specifically for McCabe Library’s space. The exhibition was curated by Andrea Packard, List Gallery director; Alicia Ruley-Nock, independent quilt maker; and Susan Dreher, Visual and Digital Initiatives Librarian. Selected from numerous applicants from across the United States, the artists featured in Responses to Gee’s Bend demonstrate a wide range of approaches, techniques, and thematic concerns.