Faith Ringgold: Challenging the Art World & Demanding Inclusion

Artist Faith Ringgold reflects fondly on her childhood in Harlem despite being born during the Great Depression, and on the impact of her mother who was a fashion designer. Ringgold discusses her connection to children from being an art teacher, recalls her first break as a young artist, details demonstrations at the Whitney Museum, her involvement in the beginning of the Women’s Art Movement and describes some of her most iconic work. Faith Ringgold, born 1930 in Harlem, New York, is a painter, mixed media sculptor, performance artist, writer, teacher and lecturer. She received her B.S. and M.A. degrees in visual art from the City College of New York in 1955 and 1959. Professor Emeritus of Art at the University of California in San Diego, Ringgold has received 23 Honorary Doctorates. She created her first political paintings, The American People Series from 1963 to 1967 and had her first and second one-person exhibitions at the Spectrum Gallery in New York. In the early 1970’s Ringgold began making tankas (inspired by a Tibetan art form of paintings framed in richly brocaded fabrics), soft sculptures and masks. Although her art was initially inspired by African art in the 1960’s, it was not until the late 1970’s that she traveled to Nigeria and Ghana to see the rich tradition of masks that have continued to be her greatest influence. She made her first quilt, Echoes of Harlem, in 1980, in collaboration with her mother, Madame Willi Posey. The quilts were an extension of her tankas from the 1970’s. However, these paintings were not only bordered with fabric but quilted, creating for her a unique way of painting using the quilt medium. Ringgold’s first story quilt Who’s Afraid of Aunt Jemima? was written in 1983 as a way of publishing her unedited words. The addition of text to her quilts has developed into a unique medium and style all her own. Her first book, the award winning Tar Beach in 1991 has won over 20 awards including the Caldecott Honor and the Coretta Scott King award for the best-illustrated children’s book of 1991. An animated version with Natalie Cole as the voice over was created by HBO in 2010. The book is based on the story quilt of the same title from The Woman on a Bridge Series, 1988. The original painted story quilt, Tar Beach, is in the permanent collection of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. From the 2013 PBS Documentary “Makers: Women Who Make America”, which examines how women have helped shape America over the past 150 years, striving for a full and fair share of political power and economic opportunity. Subscribe for access to hours of personal memories and lessons from some of the most influential people of our time. Kunhardt Film Foundation is a not-for-profit educational media organization that produces documentary films, interviews, and teaching tools about the people and ideas that shape our world. Learn more about our work and how to support our mission: http://www.kunhardtfilmfoundation.org Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kunhardtfilmfoundation/ Faith Rinngold, Artist & Writer Interview Date: July 15, 2011 Chapters: 00:00 Intro 00:11 Early childhood 02:03 Willie Posey: a mother and fashion designer 05:29 Inspiration from mother 06:26 Early memories of sexism 10:40 Attending City College 12:58 Breaking into the art scene 16:23 Politics and art 20:07 Difficulties being a political artist 22:23 Fighting for more diversity in the arts 24:51 Getting involved in the women’s movement 27:11 Fighting for female artists 30:37 Organizing protests against museums 36:28 “The Woman on a Bridge” series 40:35 Telling your own story 47:25 Finding a place for political art (tavelling) 49:41 “The Picnic at Giverny” 52:44 “Who's Afraid of Aunt Jemima?” 55:00 Understanding the women’s movement 55:38 Roe v Wade 59:00 Anita Hill 1:00:10 Advice 01:01:32 What you wanted to be when you grew up 01:01:59 Q&A 01:05:12 Shirley Chisholm 01:06:41 Feminism in the new generation 01:08:10 Quilting in the African American community ©Kunhardt Productions & McGee Media. All rights reserved. #FaithRinggoldInterview #kunhardtfilmfoundation

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