Installation view of Women's History Quilts

January 9 - March 1, 2025: Black History Quilts
March 4 - March 31, 2025: Women's History Quilts
McCrane-Kashmere Gardens Neighborhood Library
 

The McCrane-Kashmere Gardens Neighborhood Library will feature a pop-up exhibit of quilts imagined and created by Patricia Henderson aka Lady Trish. A selection of quilts honoring Black History will be on view from January 9 to February 28, followed by quilts celebrating Women's History Month in March. Lady Trish embroidered some of these quilts using machines available in the makerspace at HPL - TECHLink Dixon.

 

Lady Trish Henderson is a member of the Jubilee Quilt Circle (JQC), a signature program of the Community Artists' Collective. The JQC quilters currently have a partnership with the Glassell School of Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The JQC Quilters in Residence program, which runs through August 2025, meets every Thursday. Participants share ideas and create new works within the foundation of quilting and will also collaborate with other artists on new projects across diverse disciplines.

 

 

ARTIST STATEMENT

 

Where do I start? Where does anyone start?

 

No one pushed me into it. I remember liking quilts in my 30s because they were interesting—the patterns, the fabrics, the feel of something in your mind that you think and then express. A quilt is like a 200-piece jigsaw puzzle that you finally complete with all the pieces in place and no extras left. And someone, a total stranger, can relate to your creation and appreciate it.

 

I wanted to start quilting, so I started looking for a place that offered classes. I looked in a weekly community paper and found a center near me, and the time was right: the Aldine Area Quilt Guild on Wednesdays at 6 PM. I signed up. I knew nothing about anything. These seasoned ladies took me under their wings and showed me how to select patterns, fabric, scissors, mats, and thread with patience. Virginia Payne told me to think outside the box, and that's what I've been doing ever since.

 

I love African prints—all African prints. The colors fascinate me and remind me of the richness of my roots that make each of us so unique. Sometimes, I can finish a quilt top in a week. Other times, it can take 6 months because I have to feel it. I may start a piece with four blocks, and when I start digging around in my fabric stash, my mind goes AWOL, and it may become 24 blocks.

 

I am now part of the Jubilee Quilt Circle; they are a group that is precise and knowledgeable, but they also share, grow, and learn together. We are currently working on an Underground Railroad quilt collectively and individually. I am going to tackle my version of The Green Book. I am destined to grow with this group of ladies and men. I will continue to express myself through my quilts. I will continue to share what I have discovered and try to get you to understand how far we have come and not to sleep or become stagnant in the now—help someone to help themselves.

 

 

JOIN US

January 25, 2025 | 12:00 - 3:00 PM - Meet and Greet with Lady Trish

Saturday, March 15, 2025 | 12:00 - 3:00 PM - Sharing Stories with Patricia Henderson

 

CREATE WITH US

 

Learn to Sew, Youth Edition:

Wednesday, March 122:00 - 4:00 PMRing Neighborhood LibraryRegister Here
Thursday, March 203:30 - 5:30 PMMancuso Neighborhood LibraryRegister Here

 

Attend an Embroidery Workshop:

Wednesday, March 193:00 - 4:00 PMTECHLink Scenic WoodsRegister Here
Thursday, March 201:00 - 2:00 PMTECHLink AliefRegister Here
Thursday, March 202:00 - 3:00 PMTECHLink DixonRegister Here
Tuesday, March 253:00 - 4:00 PMTECHLink AliefRegister Here
Thursday, March 275:00 - 6:00 PMTECHLink DixonRegister Here
Monday, March 315:00 - 6:00 PMTECHLink Scenic WoodsRegister Here
Monday, March 315:00 - 6:00 PMTECHLink AliefRegister Here

 

EXPLORE SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

Kashmere Reunion Stage Band (RG 0030)

The Kashmere Stage Band (KSB) was a high school jazz funk band from the Kashmere Gardens area of Houston, Texas. Founded by band leader Conrad O. Johnson, he created a blend of funk rhythms with big-band jazz that was a unique sound for competitions and live performances. The band was voted “Most Outstanding Band in the Nation” at the 1972 All-American Stage Band contest. The Kashmere Reunion Stage Band Collection contains photographs, memorabilia, audiovisual materials and documents including letters, sheet music, event programs and advertising that represent the activities of KSB during the 1970s and the Kashmere Reunion Stage Band during the 2000s.

 

Conrad O. Johnson Collection (MSS 0039)

Conrad O. Johnson was a musician, composer, educator, and band director in Houston during the mid-twentieth century. Johnson attended Jack Yates High School, where he played saxophone in the band. After graduation, he attended the Houston College for Negroes (now Texas Southern University) and graduated from Wylie College (now Wylie University). During his 37-year teaching career in public schools, he taught jazz at Booker T. Washington High School and became the music director at Kashmere High School, where he created the Kashmere High School Stage Band. This collection contains papers that highlight Johnson's career accomplishments and his legacy as an African American band and music director and long-time youth mentor in the 1960s.

 

 

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