On September 11, Historic Anacostia will become a canvas, a stage and, perhaps most importantly, a place to remember—and imagine what comes next.
This year, Art All Night Anacostia returns with a theme that is both celebration and call to action: “Good Trouble — Louder!”
Inspired by the life and legacy of Congressman John Lewis, the evening will bring visual art, music, go-go, spoken word, performance, fashion, skate culture and unexpected creative experiences throughout Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, Marion Barry Avenue SE and the surrounding Historic Anacostia community.
But at the heart of this year’s celebration is something extraordinary: the arrival of the Good Trouble Quilts in Washington, DC for the first time.
The Good Trouble Quilts were created by predominantly African American fiber artists to honor Congressman Lewis and interpret his extraordinary life through cloth, color, stitching, imagery and story. The collection began as part of the Atlanta Quilt Festival’s three-year artistic tribute to Lewis. The original exhibition, Good Trouble Quilts — Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Congressman John Lewis, premiered in 2022 and has since traveled to other communities, including Montgomery, Alabama.
Now, these works are coming to the nation’s capital.
That matters.
John Lewis spent more than three decades serving in Congress in Washington. He walked the halls of the Capitol, fought for voting rights and human rights, and continually reminded America that democracy requires participation—and sometimes disruption.
Yet the quilts honoring that legacy have never before been exhibited in Washington.
We are deeply proud that their first DC presentation will happen east of the river, in Historic Anacostia.
There is meaning in that location.
Anacostia is one of Washington’s oldest communities. It is a neighborhood shaped by African American history, creativity, entrepreneurship, activism and resilience. Frederick Douglass called this community home. Generations of Washingtonians have built families, businesses, churches, institutions, music and culture here.
This is a community that understands what it means to make good trouble.
The Inspired by John Lewis: Good Trouble Gallery, located at 1800 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, will invite visitors to experience Lewis beyond the history books. Through the Good Trouble Quilts, visual art, historic imagery, storytelling and significant moments connected to civil rights, culture and the arts, we want people to encounter not simply what John Lewis accomplished, but what inspired him—and what his example asks of us today.
The quilts are particularly powerful because quilting itself carries history.
For generations, quilts have preserved family stories, documented community experiences and transformed ordinary materials into extraordinary expressions of identity. In African American communities, textile traditions have also represented resourcefulness, memory, beauty and storytelling.
Each stitch can hold a story.
Each piece can become part of something larger.
That feels remarkably similar to community itself.
“Good Trouble — Louder!” takes that idea beyond the gallery and into the streets. Throughout Art All Night, Historic Anacostia will become a living arts district. Artists will transform unexpected spaces. Music will fill the corridor. Spoken-word artists will use their voices. Businesses will open their doors. Residents and visitors will experience a neighborhood where history and contemporary culture exist side by side.
And yes, there will be noise.
There should be.
John Lewis taught generations that there are moments when conscience requires us to speak, participate and act. Our interpretation of that lesson is not partisan. It is deeply human: Use your voice. Create something. Stand for something. Participate in your community.
Art can do that.
A quilt can do that.
A song can do that.
A poem can do that.
A small business can do that.
And a neighborhood can do that.
That is why bringing the Good Trouble Quilts to Anacostia is bigger than presenting an exhibition. It is about connecting national history to community history and allowing the arts to create a conversation between generations.
We want young people to see these quilts and become curious about John Lewis. We want elders who lived through parts of the Civil Rights Movement to see their experiences honored. We want artists to recognize the power of their own creativity. And we want visitors from across Washington to come east of the river, walk our streets, meet our businesses and experience the extraordinary cultural energy that already exists here.
On September 11, from 5 p.m. to midnight, we invite Washington to experience Art All Night differently.
Come for the quilts.
Come for the music.
Come for the art.
Come for Anacostia.
But most importantly, come prepared to answer the question at the center of this year’s celebration:
What good trouble will you make next?
Because a legacy is not something we simply remember.
It is something we continue.
