Trailblazers

Sanctuary celebrates the life and art of Faith Ringgold this month. As a pioneering artist, author, educator and activist, Faith's life story and artworks will continue to inspire for generations to come.

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Faith Ringgold
​(Born 1930-2024)
Photo Credit: Penny Dell

Born Faith Willi Jones on October 8, 1930, in Harlem, Faith Ringgold was a pioneering painter, mixed media sculptor, performance artist, author, teacher, and activist whose powerful works address issues of race, gender, and social justice. Faith’s innovative use of quilting and storytelling techniques revolutionized the art world by bridging the gap between fine art and craft traditions.

Faith’s first children’s book, the award-winning Tar Beach, was published in 1991 by Crown. It has won more than 20 awards, including the Caldecott Honor and the Coretta Scott King Award for the best-illustrated children’s book of the year. Over the course of her career, Faith was the recipient of myriad honors. She authored 20 children’s books and was the subject of the recent, critically acclaimed touring exhibition “Faith Ringgold: American People” (2022–2024). 

Faith was an honorary vice president of the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA) and was held in high esteem by the organization's members. An outpouring of love, photographs and shared memories filled inboxes and social media pages. She will be greatly missed, but her courage, kindness and talent will live on forever.

Readers can learn more from "NAWA Luminaries."

"Anyone can fly. All you need is somewhere to go that you can't get to any other way. The next thing you know, you're flying among the stars."
~ Faith Ringgold, Tar Beach

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Some interesting facts...

• Her mother, Willi Posey, a fashion designer and seamstress, encouraged Faith’s creative pursuits from a young age.
• Faith’s first solo gallery shows were held in 1967 and 1970 at the cooperative Spectrum Gallery, New York. 
• In the 1970s she lectured frequently at feminist art conferences and actively sought the racial integration of the New York art world.
• She originated a demonstration against the Whitney Museum of American Art that led to the inclusion of works by Betye Saar and Barbara Chase-Riboud in the 1972 sculpture biennial.
• She helped win admission for Black artists to the exhibit schedule at the Museum of Modern Art. 
• In the 1980s, Faith began working on “story quilts,” which became some of her most renowned works. These were narrative pieces set in the context of African American history. 
• 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. 
• Published in 1995, Faith's memoir We Flew Over the Bridge shares the story of her struggles, growth, and triumphs.
• ​From 1984 to 2002, Faith was a professor at the University of California, San Diego.
• Faith passed away on April 13, 2024.

Faith Ringgold with Myrna Haskell at NAWA's 130th Anniversary Celebration
(New York, NY ~ January 2019)

Self-Portrait (Screenprint, 98 of 100)
Photo: thenawa.org

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Faith Ringgold Website

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