AIDS Memorial Quilt on public display at UWL, for the first time since the 90’s

UW-La Crosse is displaying parts of the AIDS Memorial Quilt for the first time in almost 30 years. 

The full quilt is made up of about 50,000 panels designed to visually tell the stories of Americans who have died from AIDS, and weighs 54 tons. 

A few segments have been brought to La Crosse for a public display from now through early April. 

“There’s perhaps no more powerful example for the capacity of art to provide space of healing community and remembrance than the National AIDS Memorial Quilt,” says UWL art instructor Sierra Rooney, who is involved in the display project.

The display began on Monday, with a Zoom presentation from Atlanta by Jada Harris of the National AIDS Memorial Foundation. On Tuesday night,

The exhibit of the 12-by-12-foot panels inside the art gallery at the Lowe Center of UWL can be seen for the next six weeks, until April 7th.