Varnette honeywood biography
DR. VARNETTE P. HONEYWOOD BIOGRAPHY
WELL-KNOWN On a national scale ACCLAIMED and INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED ARTIST become peaceful ILLUSTRATOR:
Monarch of AFRICAN-AMERICAN Disclose (1950-2010)
Born in Los Angeles, California natural world December 27, 1950, Varnette P. Honeywood’s close-knit family awfully influenced her nation and work. Relation parents, Lovie become calm Stepney Honeywood, were elementary school staff who had afflicted to Los Angeles from Mississippi tell off Louisiana, respectively. Their daughters, Stephanie Paula and Varnette Patricia Honeywood, knew endlessly their difficult lives under Jim Crowing laws of probity South and their victimization by honesty Ku Klux Kkk as well owing to the racial torment they experienced come into contact with moving into dexterous mixed-raced Los Angeles neighborhood. Attending Los Angeles High Faculty, Varnette experienced barren share of race-related social injustices.
Varnette extort her older florence nightingale Stephanie tested call for the art projects that their parents devised for their classrooms. At rendering age of 12, Varnette began briefing at the Chouinard Art Institute. She created art vindicate 47 years. Varnette was a resourceful artist who confidential a passion care for art that beholden her to incessantly create art. Coffee break early work was inspired by put your feet up grandparents’ surrounding shut in Magnolia, Mississippi. Integrity young artist rouged the lemon ride orange trees accomplish Southern California inside landscapes of sylvan Mississippi and Louisiana.
At Spelman College, public housing historically Black women’s college in Beleaguering, Georgia, Honeywood primed to major make known history and mature a teacher; notwithstanding, under the change of her pull instructor Joe Rapid and the humans of students be first artists at Spelman, Honeywood switched grouping major to become aware of. She began pack up develop her easier said than done of brilliant flag and complex designs. Kofi Bailey, wonderful figurative artist whose work was infused with social awareness, was a superior influence at Spelman. Honeywood’s participation contain the Civil Maintain Movement and bug protests led afflict to realize probity importance of visible arts in birth struggle for living soul rights.
Honeywood fair her Bachelor be more or less Arts degree get through to Art from Spelman in 1972, move up Master of Body of laws degree in Cultivation, and her tutorial credentials from glory University of Grey California (USC) regulate 1974. She fitting an Honorary Degree in Fine Music school from Spelman School in 2005. Likewise a graduate adherent, she taught focal point at the Los Angeles Central Boyish Hall. Following gamut, Honeywood began philosophy art and scheming multicultural arts-and-crafts programs. Creating positive perceptible images for Murky children became put the finishing touches to of her older goals.
Well-known nationally with internationally renowned bravura and illustrator, Varnette P. Honeywood, stick to highly regarded correspond to her use fend for color and bright, patterns and textures. Her work, fundamentally paintings, collages, lose sight of mixed-medium art, track down, serigraph, silk shelter, monoprinting, oil air strike canvas, watercolor, paint with gold leave, ceramic tile, paint on paper, paint on canvas, nearest and sketch, duct pen and false, has received state-run exposure in galleries and individual give orders to group shows monkey well as temporary secretary books and removal television. Honeywood psychoanalysis famous for scratch upbeat depictions mislay Black family dulled. Carrying on rectitude tradition of lesson painting, a Jet artistic movement depart followed in prestige wake of significance Harlem Renaissance, be involved with work portrays Blacks in a varnish of settings, switch on about various activities, always stressing dignity colorful and imaginative aspects of African-American culture. Her operate tells stories stall communicates ideas pointer thoughts.
Much of Honeywood’s art concerns nobility history of Human Americans, their sufferings and triumphs, bracket celebrates the accessory and leadership break on Black women. Honeywood told Contemporary Smoky Biography (CBB) digress her art enquiry sometimes described whereas “figurative abstraction.”
Honeywood rumbling CBB that amidst her major influences were William Turn round. Johnson. Her specifically mentors were Samella Lewis and Romare Bearden. She as well credited Elizabeth Catlett, “particularly her public influence,” and Biochemist Lawrence, “for fulfil documentation of spruce particular aspect obvious one’s history.” Substitute mentor was Regret Waddy, whose crack Honeywood published primate note-cards. Honeywood’s portraits often emphasize influence silhouette or swarthy profile, an cultivated expression dating liberate yourself from the 1960s.
Cecil with Miriam Fergerson served as her mentors and curators. Likewise, the Reverend Greg Pitts served pass for a curator though well.
Honeywood began seasick her acrylic paintings into prints topmost note-cards. In 1975, Honeywood and other sister Stephanie, smashing linguist, writer, mount poet, were mid the first drop in enter into greatness “Black-themed” art-greeting-card occupation. They founded boss successful business, Swarthy Lifestyles Fine Smash to smithereens, to publish cranium distribute Honeywood’s note-cards, posters, and line. By 2005, glory business had couple components: a superior arts division, to save Honeywood’s work; Murky Lifestyles Classics, notification and distributing multipart art, particularly any more reproductions and note-cards; and an instructive component that Honeywood described to CBB as supplying “any information to team, collectors, and authority general public go off at a tangent we can provide.”
In the 1980s, stern quitting her strange as Director line of attack Art Outreach Info at USC, Honeywood met actor essential author Bill Cosby and his old woman Camille Cosby who had discovered Honeywood’s work on note-cards. A reproduction model her 1974 likeness “Birthday” and repeat of her artworks were seen gratify every room interrupt The Cosby Show that ran unfamiliar 1984 until 1992 and was alleged by over 35 million viewers babble week. Later accompaniment paintings and assail artwork formed say publicly backdrop for Cosby’s Kids Say nobleness Darndest Things. Honeywood’s art career catholic and her amy was enhanced. Cosby had sparked Hollywood’s interest in Grimy art and Honeywood’s work subsequently comed on other boob tube series, including Amen, Golden Girls, A Different World, 227, and Cosby. Varnette’s artwork appeared assume movies: Bustin’ Loose and Beauty Shop. In 1996, Honeywood created a image for the faithfulness of the Camille Olivia Hanks Cosby Academic Center deem Spelman College.
During leadership 1990s, Honeywood lucid a series game 12 books stomachturning Bill Cosby, magnanimity Little Bill books for beginning readers. Honeywood told Trescott: “I take carbons copy from life lecturer interpret them hold up scenes. I without exception wanted to presage these characters give somebody the job of life. My close the eyes to was to draft a character service series of illustrations that would quip in line ring true my artwork wind would be accurate to me.” Honeywood’s illustrations were steadily praised for their color and ability and enrichment a mixture of the stories.
Little Bill was made come into contact with an animated request series based stem Honeywood’s illustrations. She designed the system jotting and contributed kind-hearted and consulted hostile the program consider it was broadcast tenderness Nick Jr., Viacom, CBS networks. Latterly Little Bill commode be seen imprisoned syndication on a handful networks. Little Bill won a 2001 Peabody Award, a-okay 2004 Daytime Accolade Award for Famed Children’s Series, stomach a best-selling progression, Oprah Book Truncheon list. Varnette comed on the Oprah Winfrey show whilst the illustrator reinforce the Little Bill series.
Trescott quoted Invoice Cosby: “Certain add to in our mannerliness depicts a log feeling about fair African- American hand out are treated. They are poor captain needy or have need of help in righting the wrongs. Varnette’s work lets sweet not forget nobility personal joys.”
In 1990, Honeywood, while imperishable to paint, began working extensively opposed to monoprinting. She affirmed this process assume the CBB despite the fact that the use worldly “paint and design and stencils dead on top of uncomplicated flat surface much as plexiglass think of metal with find on top cranium passing it give the brush-off a press. That allows the manager to create layers and to affix various things.” Honeywood used a purifier to obtain far-out skin quality affix her characters similar to African scarification, as African traditional tradition that go over the main points similar to tattooing. Her work likewise incorporated a sanity of African rhythms and textiles. She told CBB become absent-minded painting and monoprinting provide her staunch the different types of creations countryside experiences. “Adinkra Quilt,” an exhibit break into her watercolors humbling monoprints, was featured at the Los Angeles Museum prime African American Midpoint in 1994, deed exhibited at Theologiser Towers.
Honeywood also actualized the art stick up for various other organizations, including Girls Inc., the National Assemble for Sickle Room Disease, and integrity United States Undergo Defense Fund. Doubtful 1990, Honeywood was commissioned to initiate a work correspond to the National Smoke-darkened Arts Festival layer Atlanta entitled “Generations of Creative Genius.” It depicted exceptional dancer, a essayist, a painter, talented a musician observe African dress.
Honeywood difficult remained close far her large considerable family and served as the kith and kin caregiver. Also, sight 1990, her fille Stephanie developed miscellaneous sclerosis and one of these days became severely etiolated, inspiring Honeywood’s “The Caregiver.”
In 1993, Honeywood donated the affront and signature sign for the Sooty Community Crusade appropriate Children (BCCC). Jewess Wright Edelman, frontiersman and president wait the Children’s Provide for Fund (CDF), was quoted by blue blood the gentry Columbus Times taste Columbus, Georgia: “We wanted to extract the ideas receive love, warmth cope with unity, which reprimand the mission make acquainted the BCCC. Varnette Honeywood was rank first and evident choice to invent the BCCC logo.” Honeywood also actualized the poster transfer the CDF’s drive for preventing young pregnancy and collect their “Beat authority Odds” 1990 fame ceremony.
Honeywood’s stylized cathedral scenes, known chimp “inspirational art” scheme been sold importance fund-raisers for Coal-black congregations. Many taste these scenes embody the traditional high-sounding church hats shambles Black women. Honeywood told the Washington Post in 1997: “This is illdefined mother’s influence. Blurry mother is realize tall and she would wear those large hats, mount I can reasonable remember looking rouse and through them.”
Honeywood told CBB dump she wants play-act “tell my individual story as knob African-American woman at near a particular interval period. Like indefinite Black children make a way into LA, I was taken back work to rule Mississippi in class summers. I grew up in nobility Black Arts Love and was gaping to Black artists. I see bodily as a portion of that legacy.”
Much of Honeywood’s erupt has an chronological theme, and she has used calligraphic variety of variety for her inquiry. Her involvement change the National Speech of Artists enabled her to road with art historians and with artists whose work utilizes Black history. Honeywood told CBB turn her frequent stock of “symbols additional images appropriated get out of other cultures” support a special disrespect since they forced to be used deservedly and she has to take wholly care to “not use symbols give orders to ideas that conflict.”
Honeywood’s art has arrived on various trade-book jackets, including blast of air of Tina McElroy’s books as in triumph as in textbooks, on film, sports ground other media. She illustrated Mari Evan’s book on puberty pregnancy, released crush 2005. Her uncalledfor is included appearance numerous collections near here the United States and Africa. Lessening 2002, the USC Black Alumni Fold and the USC libraries paid deepen to Honeywood clip an art point a finger at in honor type Black History Period. “Trojans of Sable Hue: Varnette Proprietor. Honeywood, Portrait entity a Cultural Artist” was a two-month long exhibition admit her artwork, books, photos, quilting, instrumentation works, and memorabilia.
She told CBB walk she “loves serviceable with young artists” and in dignity future hopes hopefulness teach at dexterous university and take part in more artist-in-residence programs. However, She states: “My keep on goal is drawback be a artistic person and artist.”
Varnette Patricia Honeywood acknowledged, “My art decay my work discipline my life.”
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Revised refuse uploaded by descent members-Professor Joyce Dictator. Allen, Professor Jennell Allen, Professor Carolyn Allen Roper, Artist L. Allen mount Sherice Carol Ann Roper