Digital Snapshots

Hystercine Rankin Quilts & Black Quilting Traditions

This “Digital Snapshot” Exhibit features quilts created by quilting artists, Hystercine Rankin and Geraldine Nash, located in the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) Historic Objects collection and digitized collections. The exhibit highlights not only the quilting and needlework capabilities of both quilters, but their artistic expression and talents demonstrated through textiles. Moreover, Rankin and Nash represent an often-overlooked art and artistic community: Black quilters of the Southern United States.

This program is funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities through the Mississippi Humanities Council.

  • Multi-color quilt featuring needlework and a scene at the center

    About Hystercine Rankin

    Read a contextual essay and access secondary sources about Hystercine Rankin and the Black quilting tradition.

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  • A multi-color quilt featuring needlework and a scene in the center

    Snapshot Exhibit

    Browse quilts made by Hystercine Rankin and Geraldine Nash.

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  • A multi-color quilt featuring needlework and a scene of Rankin's father's death in the center

    Educator Resources

    Access K-12 activities based on images in this Snapshot.

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Cite images according to the following structure:

Creator's First Name Last Name, Title of Artwork, Date of Creation, Other relevant information such as size or medium [if known], Location of Artwork, URL.

Example:

Hystercine Rankin, “After My Father's Funeral,” February 23, 1993, Textile, Cotton, Polyester, [H] 69 ½” x [W] 67 ½”, Mississippi Department of Archives & History - Historic Objects Collection, Snapshot URL.

Suggested bibliographic citation format for items in this exhibit: