Sequoia Barnes is a textile artist and potter as well as an art and design scholar who specializes in ceramic sculpture, quilting, stitching/embroidery, wearable art, and soft sculpture. Barnes’ textile work is informed by her research-led exploration of black radical art practice which is the creative practice of subverting white supremacy through the (semiotic) deconstruction of black diasporic representation and symbolisms. Her work is also centered around the importance of making processes, rituals, and modes of fashioning; the creation of ‘art’ as equally important as the resulting object. Sequoia received her PhD in Design from Edinburgh College of Art at the University of Edinburgh. She also holds a MA in History of Design and Material Culture from the University of Brighton, a MS in Fashion Studies with certification in museum studies from the University of Delaware, and a BA in Studio Art (ceramic sculpture) with a minor in professional writing from Spring Hill College. Her artwork has been commissioned and shown by Talbot Rice Gallery, Edinburgh Art Festival, Fruitmarket, and Tramway-Glasgow.
She is currently based in Edinburgh, Scotland.