I will be raffling off this quilt in support of The Institute for Nonviolence Chicago. For those in support of #defundthepolice, but curious what that looks like in reality, this is an organization that has been walking the walk and provides a model for what community led, non-violent interventions can look like. The INVC provides proactive outreach, conflict mediation, case management, victim services, nonviolence training, and community organizing in Chicago. They do this using a hyper-local approach drawing from community members to do this work using restorative justice, trauma-informed, and nonviolence principles.

To enter, buy a ticket here, send me $25 via Venmo (@Matt-Katsaros) or PayPal (mjkatsaros@gmail.com). Each $25 is a ticket. You’re encouraged to buy as many tickets as you’d like. Next Monday the 22nd, I’ll choose a winning ticket. 100% of proceeds go to the INVC. Shipping to anywhere covered by me.

Those who are familiar with or I’ve ever talked to about my quilts know my work is unabashedly informed by the history and tradition of African American quilt making. This quilt is no different. It was inspired by a quilt made in 1985 by Bettie Phillips of Oakland, CA as seen in this book “Who’d a Thought It” by Eli Leon.

Quilt details below:

Quilt with fences pattern on front and improvisational on back.

Front dyed with indigo and pine bark. Back dyed with indigo, pine bark, eucalyptus, and oak galls & iron.

Front of the quilt is pieced together using 12oz canvas. Canvas is made from West Texas Organic Cotton that was custom woven by Huston Textiles in California. Back is pieced together using a mix of the same canvas, linens, and organic cotton Khadi.

Quilt measures roughly 79” x 68”

NOTE: Choose “FOR INVC RAFFLE — $0.00” at checkout to avoid being charged any shipping.