Faith Ringgold

Faith Ringgold (1930–2024) was an American artist, author, and educator best known for her innovative narrative quilts and influential children’s books. Born Faith Willi Jones on October 8, 1930, in Harlem, New York City, she earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from City College of New York and later became professor emeritus of art at the University of California, San Diego, where she taught from 1987 to 2002. Her work, rooted in the creative milieu of Harlem and in civil rights–era activism, addressed issues of racism, sexism, and social justice through painting, quilt-making, performance, and writing.

Ringgold authored and illustrated several notable children’s books, including Tar Beach (1991), which won a Caldecott Honor and brought her storytelling to a wide audience, and Aunt Harriet’s Underground Railroad in the Sky (1992), which draws on Harriet Tubman’s life and Underground Railroad history to introduce young readers to the realities of slavery and the joy of freedom. Over a career spanning more than six decades, she received numerous honors, including many honorary doctorates, and her work is held in major museum collections worldwide. She died in Englewood, New Jersey, on April