Joanna Dermenjian holds a Master’s degree in Cultural Studies from Queen’s University and is currently a Visiting Scholar at Toronto Metropolitan University. A researcher, lecturer, collector, and practicing quiltmaker, she explores women’s voluntary domestic production in textiles and investigates Canadian women’s cultural legacy at the intersection of world wars and voluntary labour.
Her primary research focuses on quilt-making across Canada during the Second World War, when hundreds of thousands of quilts were produced by women and children and donated through the Women’s Voluntary Service (WVS) for distribution to civilians, hospitals, and soldiers in Britain and Europe. Joanna’s work examines these quilts not only as historical artifacts but also as material traces of care, community, and sustained collective effort, highlighting the emotional and social labour embedded in their production.
In addition to her scholarly research, Joanna actively engages in public history and curatorial practice, giving lectures and workshops, developing exhibitions, and collaborating with museums and heritage organizations to bring these stories to wider audiences. She maintains a research blog and social media presence to document and share insights on Canadian textile history, bridging academic scholarship with community engagement and contemporary quilt-making practice.
I welcome the opportunity to present my research in the following lectures:
“Quilting as to War” – Presentation of research relating to the over 400,000 quilts made by Canadian women during the Second World War and shipped to Britain and Europe for civilian and military needs. 45 minute presentation offered virtually with slideshow showcasing some of the surviving quilts along with archival photos of the women involved in this domestic charitable work on the home front. Currently booking through January 2026 to June 2027.
“The Influencers: Quilt-making on a Continuum” – Presentation about quilts made in Kingston, Ontario, Canada by skilled quilters in the 1970’s, designed by artists in Los Angeles, and now in the permanent collection of the International Quilt Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska. Well before the term ‘Art Quilt’ began to be used in 1986, this cross border collaboration happened. How did it come to be? Who were the artists, who were the makers, and who put them all together? 45 minute presentation offered virtually with slideshow showcasing many of these quilts and the people involved in this project. Currently booking through January 2026 to June 2027.
Education
MA – Cultural Studies – Queen’s University
BA – Western University
Memberships
- American Quilt Study Group
- British Quilt Study Group
- Friends of ‘Haptic and Hue’
- Kingston Antiques Society
- Kingston Association of Museums, Art Galleries and Historic Sites