Visions Museum of Textile Art

Visions Museum of Textile Art celebrates and shares with the public the rich history, artistry, and cultural significance of quilting and textile art.  We provide a welcoming and inclusive space where individuals of all ages and backgrounds can explore, appreciate, and engage with the beauty and craftsmanship of textiles. 

Visions began as Quilt San Diego, a non-profit arts organization founded in 1985 to promote contemporary quilt making as fine art. The organization’s mission was to present the prestigious, international, juried Quilt Visions biennial which was hosted at various museums in the San Diego area. In 2007, volunteers organized a community build and created our permanent location in the arts district at Liberty Station in San Diego, California.

VMOTA now features 20 exhibitions per year including Online Exhibits, Member Challenges, and the Quilt Visions and Interpretations biennials. The museum also presents lectures and workshops by noted quilt and textile artists.

Liberty School: Kids and Quilts

Our Liberty School Program in partnership with the NTC Foundation, provides ongoing textile art classes with third graders from Dewey Elementary School in the Museum. The students learn about textile art while creaing self-portrait mini-quilts. 20+ volunteers donate approximately 600 hours annually of their time to this program. Their fascinating and creative self-portraits are displayed in a dedicated gallery space at the museum. We host a reception for these young artists and their families to honor their inspiring compositions.

Program impact

Since its beginning in 2009, Liberty School has served more than 500 children from under-represented communities. Pandemic halted our program in 2020, but we were excited to pick up where we left off in 2022 and continue to offer this program.

Kimono Re-imagined

Kimono Reimagined, joint production of the Mesa College Fashion Program and the Visions Museum of Textile Art, paired 19 fashion design students with 19 textile artists and challenged them to come up with a piece of wearable art, each using one randomly assigned kimono or sash, plus embellishments of their choice. The show, which featured 20 pieces was on display at the Japanese Friendship Garden Society of San Diego in Balboa Park through Feb. 24, 2023.

Program impact

The garment collection addresses creativity, cultural awareness and sustainability, and stretches our expectations in surprising ways. Project participants and viewers alike see garment construction and design in new ways and are inspired by this cross-cultural and cross-generational collaboration. Over 1,000 visitors viewed the exhibition during its run at the Japanese Friendship Garden.

On-going Educational Presentations

An example of our many educational progams is the exhibition and lecture, presented in February 2023, by Jeannie Kashima about her family's life in the Topaz Internment Camp in Utah during World War II. Ms. Kashima was the first baby born in the camp. Her family's story of courage and determination in the face of adversity told through her textile works is truly remarkable.

Program impact

Kashima's exhibition and lecture is an example of our programs that bring together diverse communities to celebrate their heritage through textile art.

Contemporary Art Quilts and Textiles

We invite you to enjoy our exhibitions, attend our events, and learn with us about contemporary textile art and artists. Please come by in person to see what is currently on view, and we hope you will explore our website for images of current and past exhibitions, Q and A chats with artists, and engaging virtual tours.