Monday, May 9, 2011

Haley's Artist Statement - Sarah's office

Zoe and I chose the underground railroad as our topic to research.  The underground railroad was on importna tpart of the civil war because it was  revolt against it, in a way.  Slaves escaped in the night to the nearest safe house (houses owned by kind white people) and stayed there for a few days.  The families that hid these escapees generoulsy gave them food, a place to sleep, and a roof over tehir heads.  the "railroad" would eventually lead the slaves to Canada, where they would be free.
Our quilt shows a railroad with houses on one side and people looking up at the sky on the other.  The railroad signifies the underground railroad, of course.  The houses are a symbol of the kindness of the white people and of safety.  The people, the slaves, are looking up at the sky because they used to use the North Star as a guide.  Last, but not least, the purple background shows how escaping slaved used to travel by night.

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