Artwork
Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles
Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles is a print by Faith Ringgold. It dates from 1996 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles is a print by Faith Ringgold, based on one of her 'painted quilts', which combine traditional quilt-making with painting.
Subject & Meaning
The print reimagines Vincent van Gogh's pictorial space, featuring African American women who played significant roles in US black history, while the artist appears in the background, symbolizing the oppressive culture they faced.
Technique & Style
Ringgold's work subverts the dominance of European art traditions, as represented by the Louvre, by merging quilt-making and painting techniques.
Context
The piece engages with the cultural legacy of racism, using Van Gogh's psychological illness as a metaphor for the sickness of white culture, potentially haunted by its past infliction of pain on African Americans.
Artist & collection
Artist
Faith Ringgold was an American painter, author, mixed media sculptor, performance artist, and intersectional activist, perhaps best known for her narrative quilts.
