Hyperallergic
“The installation, titled Sail Through This to That, is timed to the 250th anniversary of the signing of the US Declaration of Independence, a national celebration marking a tense moment for arts institutions grappling with presidential mandates to portray history favorably.”
- Isa Farfan
Social practice | Sculpture | Performance
Sail Through This To That
Sail Through This to That explores the lives of Ona Judge, the bondswoman who styled Martha Washington and escaped to freedom from Philadelphia in 1796, and the Philadelphia trans woman and aspiring fashion designer Dominique Rem'mie Fells who was killed in 2020. At the heart of the project are vibrant sails created using 18th century sailmaking techniques and fabrics reflecting Fells’s vibrant aesthetic. The work will culminate in a community-led procession that follows Judge’s escape from the site of George Washington’s historic Philadelphia home to the Delaware River where the North Wind Schooner will raise the sails for an inspiring public display through the summer of 2026, the 250th anniversary of the signing of Declaration of Independence. Throughout the month of June the following programs will be offered to the public of all ages for free:
Sail Through This To That - Transcendent Choir of Philadelphia on the Delaware River | June 6th, 2026
Sail Through This To That - Poetry Sail | June 12th, 2026
Sail Through This To That - Rest on the River | June 18th, 2026
Sail Through This to That takes its name from the poet Lucille Clifton’s work “blessing the boats (at St. Mary’s)” for its promise of transformation when one move beyond the fear in one’s circumstance. Both Judge and Fell’s lives are interwoven here as examples of freedom practices throughout American history—as demonstrations of how the pursuit of emancipation once unfolded and continues to do so today. Rather than keeping each story firmly rooted in the respective circumstances of its historical moment, allegra positions them within a continuum of history, allowing the full impact of their lives to be felt now and well into the future. The work was originally co-commissioned by ArtPhilly as part of the What Now: 2026 festival and the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation and involved partnerships with the Fabric Workshop Museum in Philadelphia, PA and Traditional Rigging in Appleton, Maine. Major support for Sail Through This to That has been provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, with additional support from the Wellspring Philanthropic Fund.
The colorful sail design features the forms of ginkgo—an ancient plant that symbolizes resilience and memory which was first brought to North America in the late 1700s in Philadelphia's Bartram’s Garden—and of mugwort, a plant known for rest and healing significance. A sewing needle - the tool both women wielded in their craft - pierces all three sails with the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers as the threads that bind them
Sail Images and video by Brandon C. Ballard.
Acknowledgements:
Curation & Project Management
Curator - Rob Blackson at Art Philly
Project Manager - Nicole Pollard
Research
Enormous thanks to Terri Edmonds, mother of Dominique Rem’mie Fells, and her family for their generosity in sharing with me stories of their beloved one and much gratitude for the scholarship of Erica Armstrong Dunbar on Ona’s incredible self determination.
Michael Bixler at Hidden City Philadelphia
John Anderies at the William Way LGBT Community Center
Jeff Huffenberger at the Independence Seaport Museum
Elizabeth Kristian and Sarah Clement at the Mystic Seaport Museum
Amanda Issac at George Washington’s Mount Vernon
The North Wind Schooner
Captain/President - Scott Hughes
Captain - Mitch Brodkin
Education & Community Programs - Andrea Robinson
Crew - Jack Hughes
Bob Bevan
Paul Thomas
Docking & Programming Host
Sara Eberle - Delaware River Waterfront Corporation
Sail Fabrication
Manager - Olivia Dwyer at the Fabric Workshop Museum
Dayle Ward at Traditional Rigging
Ginko Leaf Fabrication
Nicolo Gentile
Libby Rosa at Delaware River Waterfront Corporation
Procession
Musical Director - V. Shayne Frederick
Ajibola Rivers
Akili Farrow
Alberta Douglas
Elizabeth Steiner
Evangeline Getty Brooks
Karen Smith & ensemble
Kyran Littlejohn
Libby Rosa
Nicolo Gentile
Opus Four
Ramona Douglas
Transcendent Choir of Philadelphia
V. Shayne Frederick
Voices of Philadelphia Choir
Sail Through This To That - Transcendent Choir of Philadelphia on the Delaware River
Musical Director - Maya Kociba
Transcendent Choir of Philadelphia
Sail Through This To That - Poetry Sail
Poet - Evangeline Getty Brooks
Poet - Michael J. Ivory, Jr.
Poet - Raina J. León
Sail Through This To That - Rest on the River
Vibraphonist - Hudson River