Friday, February 19, 2016

Arty Farty Friday ~ Faith Ringgold


Artist's own website, where many of her works are detailed and shown under section headed "Images".

From Scholastic.com
When I was a little girl growing up in Harlem, I was always encouraged to value who I was and to go after what I want. Ever since I was young, I've always had a need to express my ideas through art. Being an artist and a writer of children's books is a fulfillment of my lifelong ambition.

I became an artist for the same reason I became a writer - I wanted to tell my story. I was born in Harlem in 1930. I was the baby of my family, the youngest of three children. My childhood was the most wonderful period of my life, until now. Because I was sick with asthma when I was growing up, I was forced to spend a lot of time at home. This was not a hardship, however. Instead, it gave me time alone with my mother, who was a fashion designer at the time. She taught me how to sew (just like her grandmother had taught her) and how to be creative with art and fabrics. My mother also took me to museums and to see great performers. She put me in touch with the best of everything.

When my mother died in 1981, I started making quilts as a tribute to her. During that time, I was trying to get my autobiography published, but no one wanted to print my story. In 1983, I began writing stories on my quilts, as an alternative. That way, when my quilts were hung up to look at, or photographed for a book, people could still read my stories. I have “written” 30 story quilts since then. They are written the way I write my children's stories - each section written on the quilt is a page.

Writing children's books has allowed me to communicate my ideas and vision and, I hope, give back to children some of the magic they have shown me.

Born on 8 October 1930 in Harlem, New York. Chart set for 12 noon, time of birth unavailable.


Ms Ringgold's art/writing combination is reflected nicely by Venus (the arts) in helpful sextile to Mercury (writing/communication) and a further sextile to a strengthening cluster of planets: Mars (energy)Pluto (power) and Jupiter (publication).

Her activism is indicated by the opposition of Sun (self) in diplomatic Libra, and Uranus (the rebel) in pro-active Aries; the opposition forms part of a Grand Cross involving Sun, Saturn, Jupiter and Uranus.

From Astrotheme
The typical case of a person with a grand cross in the natal chart prompts the native to create, take action, and in the beginning, to repeat the same kinds of errors. If he is perspicacious, he understands quite quickly that it is in a context of tensions and hurdles that he gives his best. In addition, as he starts to mature, he realizes that it is in inaction, and paradoxically when there are no problems to solve that he feels… the worst.

6 comments:

mike said...

She made it to her Uranus return, with the transiting Uranus-Pluto square hitting that natal Uranus the past two years...and she had a mild Uranus-Pluto square in her natal chart, with Pluto in Cancer. You emphasized her grand-square by providing the excerpt from astrotheme.com and it does seem to be the wind that fills her sail. I find it interesting that she was SO determined her autobiography be out there, so certain that others wanted to know her story. Her natal Sun-Jupiter involvement in the grand-square ensured her self-promotion. Your software doesn't indicate an opposition from Jupiter to Saturn, which would truly define a grand-square, and they are about 13* from perfect opposition. I would technically define her grand-square as two T-squares: Sun-Saturn-Uranus and Sun-Jupiter-Uranus. This may sound like a minor detail, but I think it fits her personality, as it puts tremendous emphasis on her Jupiter and Saturn, particularly when transits completed the T-square into grand-square...the transit would draw-in either Saturn or Jupiter. She has Moon (more than likely in Aries) in mutual reception with Mars, Mercury as ruler in Virgo, and Saturn as ruler in Capricorn, as final dispositors. Astrologically, I see her as a VERY strong willed, full-ego personality. Her Jupiter (expansive, joyful) always in conflict with her Saturn (constrictive, cold)...a moody, gotta-have-my-way individual.

I'm not too fond of her earlier work, but I definitely like the year-2000 acrylic-fabric pieces. I'm not at all familiar with her literature.

Twilight said...

mike ~ The "gotta-have-my-way" thing in the chart hadn't struck me, but I see what you mean. LOL! I, too, think her Moon will be in impulsive 1st sign of zodiac Aries, and bringing about another loose opposition - this one to her rather less egotistical Libra Sun.

Some very good points there, mike - thanks for additional insights.

I think we'd need to see her quilts "in the flesh" to truly appreciate them.
I like her piece depicting the US flag "weeping".

mike (again) said...

There isn't much biographical information to provide psychological clues about Ringgold without reading her autobiography, but I did find an interesting Publishers Weekly review of "We Flew over the Bridge: The Memoirs of Faith Ringgold":

"...The artist has also enjoyed a long and varied teaching career. Unfortunately, this portrait is filled with contradictions that often undermine Ringgold's sincerity and prevent her from establishing an emotional bond with the reader. Though she lists her activist stance in support of rights and opportunities for African Americans and, more broadly, for all women, her narratives fail to convey the passion of her described convictions. Ringgold stresses the importance of "family" and "values," but her unconventional marriage, living and child-rearing arrangements do not reflect her good intentions. The end result reads like the sanitized diary of a self-absorbed woman."
http://www.amazon.com/We-Flew-over-Bridge-Ringgold/dp/0822335646/ref=la_B001IU4WVY_1_11?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1455910803&sr=1-11

Twilight said...

mike (again) ~ Hmmm - interesting. That upholds what you gleaned from her chart then! Good job! We'd need to read the book to find out about the "unconventional marriage and child rearing arrangements" in context, so have to take the reviewer's word, but the contradiction part tallies with the multiple oppositions and squares in the chart.

mike (again) said...

How The Donald and Bernie arrived:

"Social media has turned Republican & Democratic Parties into host bodies for 3rd party candidates."
https://storify.com/cshirky/republican-and-democratic-parties-are-now-host-bod

Twilight said...

mike (again) ~ That's one way of putting it! :-) It wouldn't have happened in 2016 without the right candidates though (and that is not meant as a compliment to Trump!)