Dindga McCannon

Dindga McCannon, born July 31, 1947, is an African-American artist, quilter, author and illustrator.

McCannon was born and raised in Harlem and inspired to become an artist at the age of 10. She is self-taught and works intuitively. Calling herself a "fiber artist" she works at "fusing my fine art "training" with the traditional women's needlework taught to me by my mother, Lottie K. Porter and grandmother Hattie Kilgo-sewing", beading, embroidery and quilting into what is now known as ArtQuilts.^[1]

As a 1960's member of Weusi, Dindga became interested in the Black Arts movement. In the 1970's, she was part of the first group show of professional black women artists in New York City.^[2] Dindga has been an artist for 50 years. In addition to her work as a quilter author, and illustrator, Dindga considers herself a costume designer and muralist and a print maker. Her work is a celebration of women's lives, portraits. Her art is a window into "herstory."

She recently presented at the Art of Justice: Articulating an Ethos and Aesthetic of the Movement^[3] conference at New York University presented by the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute in Collaboration with the Department of Art and Public Policy, New York University; Institute of African American Affairs, New York University; and Institute for Research in African American Studies, Columbia University.

Memberships

McCannon is a member of two artist’s collectives, Weusi and Where We At (a black woman's collective from the 1970s).

Books

McCannon has written and illustrated two books. Peaches, published by Dell in 1977, tells the story of a young black girl growing up in Harlem tells about her life with her family and her ambition to be an artist.

Wilhemina Jones, Future Star, published by Delacorte in 1980, has a similar theme, with a young black girl growing up in Harlem in the mid-1960s who dreams of pursuing an art career and leaving the oppressive atmosphere of her home.

McCannon has also illustrated books for others: Omar at X-mas by Edgar White, Lothrop, Lee & Shepardd, and Speak to the Winds, African Proverbs, written by K. O. Opuku, published by Lothrop, Lee & Shepard in 1972.^[4]

Selected Quilts

McCannon has a quilt (entitled "Yekk's Song") in the permanent collection of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture^[5]

Exhibitions

One Woman Shows

In 2009, McCannon had a one-woman exhibition titled "(This) Woman's Work is Never Done-Celebrating 44 years of Art Making," It was featured at the Hamilton Landmark Galleries, 467 West 144th Street in Harlem.^[6]

McCannon's work has appeared in many group shows since 1971.^[7]

Selected Group Shows

• 2001: “Spirits of the Cloth,” Contemporary Quilts by African American Artists, American Craft Museum, NY
• 2002: “Spirits of the Cloth,” Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC.
• 2003: “America from the Heart,” Hudson River Museum, NY
• 2004: “America from the Heart: Quilters Remember 9/11”, Page–Walker Art and History Center, Cary, NC
• 2008: Weusi Collective: A Retrospective of 50 Years, African American Museum of Nassau County, NY
• 2009: “Textural Rhythms: Quilting the Jazz Tradition,” American Folk Art Museum, NYC
• 2010: “Weusi Revisited 2010,” Dwyer Cultural Center, NY

Commissions

McCannon has also been commissioned to create various pieces of art.

• 1985: “United Community,” 50 ft by 6 stories, 25 Furman Ave, Brooklyn, NY, Dept of Cultural Affairs
• 2000: “Amazing Life of Althea Gibson,” 60 inches by 120 inches art story quilt, Disney Inc for ESPN Zone, 42nd Street and Brady, MYC
• 2001: “Winning the Vote,” Art Quilt on the Pioneers of Wome’s voting history America, Scholastic Magazine
• 2008: “Zara Neal Hurston,” B. O.S.S., Columbia University, NY

Collections

• Johnson Publishing Co., Studio Museum in Harlem Permanent Collection
• Schromberg Center, Harlem NY, Arts in Embassies Program, Washington, DC^[8]
• Brooklyn Museum Collection^[9]

Awards

• 2005 – N. Y. F. A. Fellowship – Crafts
• 2007 – Urban Artists Initiative, Harlem Arts Alliance
• 2008 – Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance – Individual Artists Grant 2009 – Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance – Individual Artist Grant

Further reading

• Community Works teams with a bevy of Harlem institutions to display a quilt of Uptown history and culture New York Daily News, Sept 6, 2012

References