Coulter Fussell: Stitching Mississippi Stories

National Gallery of Art

documentary, digital series, 16 min, 2026 |

In Water Valley, Mississippi, a town of fewer than 4,000 people where objects still carry traceable histories, textile artist Coulter Fussell works only with what her community gives her: old quilts, work shirts, uniforms, worn household linens. From her storefront studio on Main Street, she transforms these discarded scraps into textile works that function as rescued documents, intimate and political at once. Coulter is also the town’s chronicler, writing a column for the local paper. Lately she has started collecting a new kind of scrap: the photos and videos her sons and their friends post and forget. Moving between fabric and text, rumor and record, the film shows how a needle can become an archaeological tool.

CREDITS


SERIES CREATED AND DIRECTED BY
Rafael Salazar Moreno

SERIES CREATED AND PRODUCED BY
Ava Wiland

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Scott Keiner

SUPERVISING LINE PRODUCER
Karla Carnewal

PRODUCER
Ava Wiland

FIELD PRODUCER
Kelsey Ianuzzi

WRITTEN & EDITED BY
Russell Yaffe

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Rafael Salazar Moreno

GAFFER, CAMERA ASSISTAN & CAMERA OPERATOR
Caleb A.Zorn

NARRATION READ BY
Michael Sugarman

COLORIST AND SOUND DESIGN AND MIX
Russell Yaffe

DRONE OPERATOR
Rafael Salazar Moreno

VFX
Russell Yaffe

VOICE OVER RECORDING
Merche Blasco