Administrative/Biographical History
Ricarda “Ricky” (née Kohn) Clark was born November 1, 1932 in Greenwich, Connecticut. Her family later moved to Croton-on-Hudson, New York, where she attended secondary school. Clark graduated from Oberlin College in 1954 with a B.A.
Recognized as one of nation’s foremost quilt historians, she specializes in Ohio quilting and is a series editor for the Ohio Quilts Series, published by Ohio University Press. Known as both a writer and an editor, her body of published work includes six books, several which were written with co-authors, and more than 30 articles. The majority of these works focus on Ohio quilts and quilters. Along with co-authors George Knepper and Ellice Ronsheim, Clark wrote Quilts in Community: Ohio’s Tradition (published in 1991), which won a 1992 Ohioana Book Award, as well as several other awards. Other notable titles of Clark’s include Quilts of the Ohio Western Reserve (2005) and Germanic Folk Culture in Eastern Ohio (1986), which was co-authored with Stanley A. Kaufman. As of January 2008, Clark was at work on her seventh book.
Clark is also a quilt educator, presenting both programs and lectures on quilting, and has curated numerous quilt-related exhibitions. Her professional organizations include the Ohio Folk Art Network, the American Quilt Study Group, the Ohio Arts Council, Ohio Quilt Research Project and the Oberlin Heritage Center. She is an affiliate scholar at Oberlin College and an associate fellow at the International Quilts Study Center at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, Neb. In 2007, Clark received an Ohioana Citation Award for distinguished service to Ohio in the field of decorative arts.
Clark is married to 1955 Oberlin graduate David Clark (b. Dec. 7, 1931), who served as director of development, vice president for external affairs and director of capital development at Oberlin before retirement. The couple has two sons, Jonathan (b. 1958) and Kevin (b. 1960). Clark currently resides at the Kendal Community in Oberlin with her husband.
Sources Consulted
Hengst, Linda R. “2007 Ohioana Award Winners Announced,” Ohioana Library Association, Sept. 21, 2007.
Author: Elizabeth Brinkman Administrative Information
