Marion Coleman grew up in a family of quiltmakers. Growing up in Texas, she learned to sew from her grandmother, Carie Porter, who taught her to make clothes. She was raised by her grandmother, who taught her how to sew, crochet, and quilt, and her maternal great grandmother and great aunts were all prolific quiltmakers. Marion learned to quilt by emulating the quilts of her great aunts Corine Miller and Mary Porter and the narrative quilts of Nora Ezell. Marion began to quilt in the 1980's, and her work has since been exhibited in the United States and internationally.
Coleman became reconnected with quiltmaking in the 1980s, inspired by her great aunt, Corine Porter Miller, who was 101 years old and still making quilts.
She moved to California where she earned a Bachelor's degree from U.C. Riverside and Master's in Counseling from Cal State Hayward. Coleman was a social worker by profession, who cleverly combined social work with quilting. She united her 30 years of social service experience with quilt-making to provide community art education in schools, libraries, and even juvenile detention centers. Since 1984, Marion Coleman has lived in Castro Valley. In 2003, she became a professional artist.
In a bio written for the Arts Endowment by Carolyn Mazloomi, 2014 Bess Lomax Hawes National Heritage Fellow and founder of the Women of Color Quilters Network, she describes how Coleman took what she learned and made it her own: "Although her early quilts were steeped in traditional African-American quilt techniques, Coleman's quilts stood out differently because of her unorthodox use of materials such as paint, plastic, beads, garments, paper, buttons, and recycled fabric, and the use of extensive machine stitching. As her interest in quiltmaking grew, she learned new techniques and technology—the introduction of digital technology, the ability to transfer photo imagery to fabric, and access to the internet were especially important to her. These images on fabric were soon found in her quilt compositions. The new techniques, combined with the traditional skills taught to her by her grandmother and great aunt, were utilized to create thought-provoking narratives depicting a wide range of subjects, including African-American history and culture, social justice, and women and aging."
Coleman used found and vintage cloth to embrace traditional methods of quiltmaking learned from family members as well as to explore contemporary approaches to quiltmaking and fabric collage. Her background in counseling and work in social services led her to be deeply involved in the community and its stories. Through her emotionally moving art, Coleman asked us to think about human rights and issues of racial equality as she deeply explored African-American life in the United States.
Coleman exhibited her quilts both nationally and internationally while also using her background working in social services to provide community art education in schools, libraries, community organizations, and juvenile justice centers. She was a teaching artist with the Alameda County Arts Commission and she taught quiltmaking for three years to incarcerated youth at Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center. She also worked with the Minerva Project, where boys and girls looked at positive traits about themselves and family members to make quilts.
Coleman's art has been exhibited nationally and internationally in group and solo exhibitions, is prominent in public spaces, and is included in both public and private collections. Coleman's work was featured in The New York Times in "Quilts With a Sense of Place, Stitched in Oakland," by Patricia Leigh Brown (published February 2, 2016), in books including Quilts and Human Rights by Marsha MacDowell et al (University of Nebraska Press, 2016), and And Still We Rise: Race, Culture, and Visual Conversations by Carolyn Mazloomi (Schiffer, 2015).
A prolific artist, her works have been displayed in prestigious venues around the world. These include the Underground Railroad Freedom Center (Ohio); Orange County History Center (Florida); Bullock Museum (Texas); Michigan State University Museum, and Museum of the African Diaspora, San Francisco, to name a few. Internationally, her work has been exhibited in South Africa, Europe, Japan, Costa Rica and the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem.
Coleman was a recipient of a 2018 NEA National Heritage Fellowship—the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. In a 2018 podcast with the NEA, Coleman talked about the lessons she was trying to teach the youth that she worked with: "Well, I want them to know that they can be creative, that they can make mistakes and it's still okay. Everything is a journey. You know that you can try this, explore it, keep going if it didn't turn out. If it didn't turn out the way you want it, make it over. You know you have another chance. So it's okay to make mistakes, because we learn from our mistakes. Everything is not smooth and it's richer actually when you have some ups and downs, because it gives you something to reflect upon in how you would change it."
In 2018, Congressman Eric Swalwell entered a commendation for Coleman into the Congressional Record, recognizing her receipt of a National Endowment for
the Arts National Heritage Fellowship, which is the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.
It is with great sadness that the National Endowment for the Arts acknowledges the death on Wednesday April 24, 2019 of African-American quilter Marion Coleman, from Castro Valley, California. It is with much respect and sadness that Textile Society of America recognizes the death and celebrates the life and art of African-American quiltmaker Marion Coleman, a recent member of the TSA community.
She is survived by four children and three grandchildren. At her request, there will be no memorial service. However, the family welcomes donations in her memory to Alameda County Arts Commission. Her estate gifted her book collection to the Friends of the Castro Valley Library. Marion's special collection included books on African American culture and art, quilting, fabric arts, story quilts, and many more subjects. The Marion Coleman book sale took place Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, 8 am – Noon.
Marion Coleman's death will be felt throughout our community and beyond, and she will be greatly missed by those who worked with her personally and by all who found joy and meaning in her art.
Mazloomi, Carolyn. 2018. BIO of Marion Coleman: African-American quilter. DC. National Endowment for the Arts.
National Endowment for the Arts Statement on the Death of NEA National Heritage Fellow Marion Coleman.
Sandsmark, Linda. Famed Quilter Marion Coleman Passes Away. Castro Valley Forum. May 1, 2019. Year 31: Issue No. 17.
Coleman became reconnected with quiltmaking in the 1980s, inspired by her great aunt, Corine Porter Miller, who was 101 years old and still making quilts.
She moved to California where she earned a Bachelor's degree from U.C. Riverside and Master's in Counseling from Cal State Hayward. Coleman was a social worker by profession, who cleverly combined social work with quilting. She united her 30 years of social service experience with quilt-making to provide community art education in schools, libraries, and even juvenile detention centers. Since 1984, Marion Coleman has lived in Castro Valley. In 2003, she became a professional artist.
In a bio written for the Arts Endowment by Carolyn Mazloomi, 2014 Bess Lomax Hawes National Heritage Fellow and founder of the Women of Color Quilters Network, she describes how Coleman took what she learned and made it her own: "Although her early quilts were steeped in traditional African-American quilt techniques, Coleman's quilts stood out differently because of her unorthodox use of materials such as paint, plastic, beads, garments, paper, buttons, and recycled fabric, and the use of extensive machine stitching. As her interest in quiltmaking grew, she learned new techniques and technology—the introduction of digital technology, the ability to transfer photo imagery to fabric, and access to the internet were especially important to her. These images on fabric were soon found in her quilt compositions. The new techniques, combined with the traditional skills taught to her by her grandmother and great aunt, were utilized to create thought-provoking narratives depicting a wide range of subjects, including African-American history and culture, social justice, and women and aging."
Coleman used found and vintage cloth to embrace traditional methods of quiltmaking learned from family members as well as to explore contemporary approaches to quiltmaking and fabric collage. Her background in counseling and work in social services led her to be deeply involved in the community and its stories. Through her emotionally moving art, Coleman asked us to think about human rights and issues of racial equality as she deeply explored African-American life in the United States.
Coleman exhibited her quilts both nationally and internationally while also using her background working in social services to provide community art education in schools, libraries, community organizations, and juvenile justice centers. She was a teaching artist with the Alameda County Arts Commission and she taught quiltmaking for three years to incarcerated youth at Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center. She also worked with the Minerva Project, where boys and girls looked at positive traits about themselves and family members to make quilts.
Coleman's art has been exhibited nationally and internationally in group and solo exhibitions, is prominent in public spaces, and is included in both public and private collections. Coleman's work was featured in The New York Times in "Quilts With a Sense of Place, Stitched in Oakland," by Patricia Leigh Brown (published February 2, 2016), in books including Quilts and Human Rights by Marsha MacDowell et al (University of Nebraska Press, 2016), and And Still We Rise: Race, Culture, and Visual Conversations by Carolyn Mazloomi (Schiffer, 2015).
A prolific artist, her works have been displayed in prestigious venues around the world. These include the Underground Railroad Freedom Center (Ohio); Orange County History Center (Florida); Bullock Museum (Texas); Michigan State University Museum, and Museum of the African Diaspora, San Francisco, to name a few. Internationally, her work has been exhibited in South Africa, Europe, Japan, Costa Rica and the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem.
Coleman was a recipient of a 2018 NEA National Heritage Fellowship—the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. In a 2018 podcast with the NEA, Coleman talked about the lessons she was trying to teach the youth that she worked with: "Well, I want them to know that they can be creative, that they can make mistakes and it's still okay. Everything is a journey. You know that you can try this, explore it, keep going if it didn't turn out. If it didn't turn out the way you want it, make it over. You know you have another chance. So it's okay to make mistakes, because we learn from our mistakes. Everything is not smooth and it's richer actually when you have some ups and downs, because it gives you something to reflect upon in how you would change it."
In 2018, Congressman Eric Swalwell entered a commendation for Coleman into the Congressional Record, recognizing her receipt of a National Endowment for
the Arts National Heritage Fellowship, which is the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.
It is with great sadness that the National Endowment for the Arts acknowledges the death on Wednesday April 24, 2019 of African-American quilter Marion Coleman, from Castro Valley, California. It is with much respect and sadness that Textile Society of America recognizes the death and celebrates the life and art of African-American quiltmaker Marion Coleman, a recent member of the TSA community.
She is survived by four children and three grandchildren. At her request, there will be no memorial service. However, the family welcomes donations in her memory to Alameda County Arts Commission. Her estate gifted her book collection to the Friends of the Castro Valley Library. Marion's special collection included books on African American culture and art, quilting, fabric arts, story quilts, and many more subjects. The Marion Coleman book sale took place Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, 8 am – Noon.
Marion Coleman's death will be felt throughout our community and beyond, and she will be greatly missed by those who worked with her personally and by all who found joy and meaning in her art.
Mazloomi, Carolyn. 2018. BIO of Marion Coleman: African-American quilter. DC. National Endowment for the Arts.
National Endowment for the Arts Statement on the Death of NEA National Heritage Fellow Marion Coleman.
Sandsmark, Linda. Famed Quilter Marion Coleman Passes Away. Castro Valley Forum. May 1, 2019. Year 31: Issue No. 17.
Marion Coleman grew up in a family of quiltmakers. Growing up in Texas, she learned to sew from her grandmother, Carie Porter, who taught her to make clothes. She was raised by her grandmother, who taught her how to sew, crochet, and quilt, and her maternal great grandmother and great aunts were all prolific quiltmakers. Marion learned to quilt by emulating the quilts of her great aunts Corine Miller and Mary Porter and the narrative quilts of Nora Ezell. Marion began to quilt in the 1980's, and her work has since been exhibited in the United States and internationally.
Coleman became reconnected with quiltmaking in the 1980s, inspired by her great aunt, Corine Porter Miller, who was 101 years old and still making quilts.
She moved to California where she earned a Bachelor's degree from U.C. Riverside and Master's in Counseling from Cal State Hayward. Coleman was a social worker by profession, who cleverly combined social work with quilting. She united her 30 years of social service experience with quilt-making to provide community art education in schools, libraries, and even juvenile detention centers. Since 1984, Marion Coleman has lived in Castro Valley. In 2003, she became a professional artist.
In a bio written for the Arts Endowment by Carolyn Mazloomi, 2014 Bess Lomax Hawes National Heritage Fellow and founder of the Women of Color Quilters Network, she describes how Coleman took what she learned and made it her own: "Although her early quilts were steeped in traditional African-American quilt techniques, Coleman's quilts stood out differently because of her unorthodox use of materials such as paint, plastic, beads, garments, paper, buttons, and recycled fabric, and the use of extensive machine stitching. As her interest in quiltmaking grew, she learned new techniques and technology—the introduction of digital technology, the ability to transfer photo imagery to fabric, and access to the internet were especially important to her. These images on fabric were soon found in her quilt compositions. The new techniques, combined with the traditional skills taught to her by her grandmother and great aunt, were utilized to create thought-provoking narratives depicting a wide range of subjects, including African-American history and culture, social justice, and women and aging."
Coleman used found and vintage cloth to embrace traditional methods of quiltmaking learned from family members as well as to explore contemporary approaches to quiltmaking and fabric collage. Her background in counseling and work in social services led her to be deeply involved in the community and its stories. Through her emotionally moving art, Coleman asked us to think about human rights and issues of racial equality as she deeply explored African-American life in the United States.
Coleman exhibited her quilts both nationally and internationally while also using her background working in social services to provide community art education in schools, libraries, community organizations, and juvenile justice centers. She was a teaching artist with the Alameda County Arts Commission and she taught quiltmaking for three years to incarcerated youth at Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center. She also worked with the Minerva Project, where boys and girls looked at positive traits about themselves and family members to make quilts.
Coleman's art has been exhibited nationally and internationally in group and solo exhibitions, is prominent in public spaces, and is included in both public and private collections. Coleman's work was featured in The New York Times in "Quilts With a Sense of Place, Stitched in Oakland," by Patricia Leigh Brown (published February 2, 2016), in books including Quilts and Human Rights by Marsha MacDowell et al (University of Nebraska Press, 2016), and And Still We Rise: Race, Culture, and Visual Conversations by Carolyn Mazloomi (Schiffer, 2015).
A prolific artist, her works have been displayed in prestigious venues around the world. These include the Underground Railroad Freedom Center (Ohio); Orange County History Center (Florida); Bullock Museum (Texas); Michigan State University Museum, and Museum of the African Diaspora, San Francisco, to name a few. Internationally, her work has been exhibited in South Africa, Europe, Japan, Costa Rica and the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem.
Coleman was a recipient of a 2018 NEA National Heritage Fellowship—the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. In a 2018 podcast with the NEA, Coleman talked about the lessons she was trying to teach the youth that she worked with: "Well, I want them to know that they can be creative, that they can make mistakes and it's still okay. Everything is a journey. You know that you can try this, explore it, keep going if it didn't turn out. If it didn't turn out the way you want it, make it over. You know you have another chance. So it's okay to make mistakes, because we learn from our mistakes. Everything is not smooth and it's richer actually when you have some ups and downs, because it gives you something to reflect upon in how you would change it."
In 2018, Congressman Eric Swalwell entered a commendation for Coleman into the Congressional Record, recognizing her receipt of a National Endowment for
the Arts National Heritage Fellowship, which is the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.
It is with great sadness that the National Endowment for the Arts acknowledges the death on Wednesday April 24, 2019 of African-American quilter Marion Coleman, from Castro Valley, California. It is with much respect and sadness that Textile Society of America recognizes the death and celebrates the life and art of African-American quiltmaker Marion Coleman, a recent member of the TSA community.
She is survived by four children and three grandchildren. At her request, there will be no memorial service. However, the family welcomes donations in her memory to Alameda County Arts Commission. Her estate gifted her book collection to the Friends of the Castro Valley Library. Marion's special collection included books on African American culture and art, quilting, fabric arts, story quilts, and many more subjects. The Marion Coleman book sale took place Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, 8 am – Noon.
Marion Coleman's death will be felt throughout our community and beyond, and she will be greatly missed by those who worked with her personally and by all who found joy and meaning in her art.
Mazloomi, Carolyn. 2018. BIO of Marion Coleman: African-American quilter. DC. National Endowment for the Arts.
National Endowment for the Arts Statement on the Death of NEA National Heritage Fellow Marion Coleman.
Sandsmark, Linda. Famed Quilter Marion Coleman Passes Away. Castro Valley Forum. May 1, 2019. Year 31: Issue No. 17.
Coleman became reconnected with quiltmaking in the 1980s, inspired by her great aunt, Corine Porter Miller, who was 101 years old and still making quilts.
She moved to California where she earned a Bachelor's degree from U.C. Riverside and Master's in Counseling from Cal State Hayward. Coleman was a social worker by profession, who cleverly combined social work with quilting. She united her 30 years of social service experience with quilt-making to provide community art education in schools, libraries, and even juvenile detention centers. Since 1984, Marion Coleman has lived in Castro Valley. In 2003, she became a professional artist.
In a bio written for the Arts Endowment by Carolyn Mazloomi, 2014 Bess Lomax Hawes National Heritage Fellow and founder of the Women of Color Quilters Network, she describes how Coleman took what she learned and made it her own: "Although her early quilts were steeped in traditional African-American quilt techniques, Coleman's quilts stood out differently because of her unorthodox use of materials such as paint, plastic, beads, garments, paper, buttons, and recycled fabric, and the use of extensive machine stitching. As her interest in quiltmaking grew, she learned new techniques and technology—the introduction of digital technology, the ability to transfer photo imagery to fabric, and access to the internet were especially important to her. These images on fabric were soon found in her quilt compositions. The new techniques, combined with the traditional skills taught to her by her grandmother and great aunt, were utilized to create thought-provoking narratives depicting a wide range of subjects, including African-American history and culture, social justice, and women and aging."
Coleman used found and vintage cloth to embrace traditional methods of quiltmaking learned from family members as well as to explore contemporary approaches to quiltmaking and fabric collage. Her background in counseling and work in social services led her to be deeply involved in the community and its stories. Through her emotionally moving art, Coleman asked us to think about human rights and issues of racial equality as she deeply explored African-American life in the United States.
Coleman exhibited her quilts both nationally and internationally while also using her background working in social services to provide community art education in schools, libraries, community organizations, and juvenile justice centers. She was a teaching artist with the Alameda County Arts Commission and she taught quiltmaking for three years to incarcerated youth at Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center. She also worked with the Minerva Project, where boys and girls looked at positive traits about themselves and family members to make quilts.
Coleman's art has been exhibited nationally and internationally in group and solo exhibitions, is prominent in public spaces, and is included in both public and private collections. Coleman's work was featured in The New York Times in "Quilts With a Sense of Place, Stitched in Oakland," by Patricia Leigh Brown (published February 2, 2016), in books including Quilts and Human Rights by Marsha MacDowell et al (University of Nebraska Press, 2016), and And Still We Rise: Race, Culture, and Visual Conversations by Carolyn Mazloomi (Schiffer, 2015).
A prolific artist, her works have been displayed in prestigious venues around the world. These include the Underground Railroad Freedom Center (Ohio); Orange County History Center (Florida); Bullock Museum (Texas); Michigan State University Museum, and Museum of the African Diaspora, San Francisco, to name a few. Internationally, her work has been exhibited in South Africa, Europe, Japan, Costa Rica and the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem.
Coleman was a recipient of a 2018 NEA National Heritage Fellowship—the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. In a 2018 podcast with the NEA, Coleman talked about the lessons she was trying to teach the youth that she worked with: "Well, I want them to know that they can be creative, that they can make mistakes and it's still okay. Everything is a journey. You know that you can try this, explore it, keep going if it didn't turn out. If it didn't turn out the way you want it, make it over. You know you have another chance. So it's okay to make mistakes, because we learn from our mistakes. Everything is not smooth and it's richer actually when you have some ups and downs, because it gives you something to reflect upon in how you would change it."
In 2018, Congressman Eric Swalwell entered a commendation for Coleman into the Congressional Record, recognizing her receipt of a National Endowment for
the Arts National Heritage Fellowship, which is the nation's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.
It is with great sadness that the National Endowment for the Arts acknowledges the death on Wednesday April 24, 2019 of African-American quilter Marion Coleman, from Castro Valley, California. It is with much respect and sadness that Textile Society of America recognizes the death and celebrates the life and art of African-American quiltmaker Marion Coleman, a recent member of the TSA community.
She is survived by four children and three grandchildren. At her request, there will be no memorial service. However, the family welcomes donations in her memory to Alameda County Arts Commission. Her estate gifted her book collection to the Friends of the Castro Valley Library. Marion's special collection included books on African American culture and art, quilting, fabric arts, story quilts, and many more subjects. The Marion Coleman book sale took place Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, 8 am – Noon.
Marion Coleman's death will be felt throughout our community and beyond, and she will be greatly missed by those who worked with her personally and by all who found joy and meaning in her art.
Mazloomi, Carolyn. 2018. BIO of Marion Coleman: African-American quilter. DC. National Endowment for the Arts.
National Endowment for the Arts Statement on the Death of NEA National Heritage Fellow Marion Coleman.
Sandsmark, Linda. Famed Quilter Marion Coleman Passes Away. Castro Valley Forum. May 1, 2019. Year 31: Issue No. 17.
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