What started as a classroom art project has stitched its way to one of the most iconic stages in the country — Washington, D.C.’s Kennedy Center — where quilt squares created by Owensboro Middle School students will soon be on display as part of a national exhibit.
The student artwork will be part of “EARTH to SPACE: Arts Breaking the Sky,” a multi-week festival running March 28 through April 20. The event brings together artists and scientists from across the country to explore how the arts can inspire action to protect the planet and promote space exploration.
The display includes two “Lunar Quilts” featuring squares designed by students and artists from all 50 states, inspired by NASA’s Artemis campaign to return humans to the moon. OMS 8th-grade art students had three quilt squares selected for inclusion — an impressive feat, as the national project welcomed submissions from schools of all levels.
The students whose work will be displayed are Cayla Bean, Rishaad Cason, Rosie Corona, Aaliyah Hernandez, Lionidas Johnson, Sammy Johnson, Major Matson, Francis Mazariegos Lopez, Caelan Odell, Odetha Shandrack, Trey Stoddart, KK Turner, and Darion Veach.
Art teacher Melanie Critchelow said the project started when OMS Fine Arts Coordinator Kara Smith brought the idea to her through a Kennedy Center partnership opportunity.
“At first, I told Kara, ‘I don’t quilt,’ but I knew someone who did — my mother-in-law,” Critchelow said. “She taught me the basics, and then I taught the kids.”
Students began by researching NASA’s Artemis program and sketching designs that reflected lunar exploration. After voting on their favorite concepts, the students collaborated to bring 18 quilt squares to life — cutting fabric, hand-painting moons and rockets, stitching, and assembling each piece with precision.
“We treated it like a production line,” Critchelow said. “One boy cut all the moons, some girls did the stitching, others painted rockets — it was a full team effort.”
Critchelow said she initially expected one or none of the OMS submissions to be chosen. But when all three selected designs were from her students, she was stunned.
“I was just blown away,” she said. “I knew the kids had done a great job, but I didn’t expect to see our work on a national stage.”
The class also used the remaining quilt squares to make their own full-sized Lunar Quilt, which will be on display at the Owensboro Public Schools Fine Arts Festival at the RiverPark Center later this spring.
Eighth-grader KK Turner, who has been quilting with her grandmother for over a year, was one of the driving forces behind the project.
“I love quilting — it’s one of my favorite things now,” Turner said. “I did the tacking on the final quilt, which ties the front, middle, and back layers together. I was really excited to be a part of it.”
Turner said the experience taught her how much focus and patience quilting requires, and she plans to keep pursuing it as a hobby.
For fellow student Rishaad Cason, the process was all about teamwork and creativity.
“It was really fun working with everybody,” Cason said. “It’s exciting to know that something we made here in Owensboro is going to be seen in Washington, D.C.”
Critchelow will travel to the Kennedy Center for the festival’s opening, where she’ll get to meet astronaut Dr. Karen Nyberg, who originally launched the Lunar Quilt initiative.
“Getting to see our students’ artwork displayed at the Kennedy Center is an unforgettable honor,” Critchelow said. “It started out as a small project — and now it’s something huge.”
