“Quilts reside squarely at the intersection of art and stories; of form and function,” says Amy Moore, CHAW’s Executive Director. “Like the AIDS Memorial Quilt, the Migrant Quilt Project introduces a meta level for understanding the complex interplay of social, political, and emotional planes of a hot button topic in America (and elsewhere) as only art can.”

The quilts in this 18 piece collection memorialize the immigrants who have died in the Arizona desert each year since 2000. Materials used in the quilts were collected at migrant layup sites used for rest and shelter on established trails in the Sonoran Desert. The name of every one of these individuals is inscribed on the quilt, with the word “unknown” or “desconocido” used to designate an unidentified person’s remains.

“Our goal with this exhibit is to increase awareness through visual storytelling of issues facing immigrants coming to the United States and to promote a better understanding of their lived experiences,” says Moore. “Our hope is a collective consciousness-raising that can positively impact the way in which people treat each other.”