- Edmonia Lewis (1843-1890). Sculptor. Daughter of a Chippewa Indian mother and a Black father, her heritage greatly influenced her work. Orphaned before age five, she was raised by her mother’s tribe as Wildfire. When she enrolled at Oberlin College with financial support from her brother, she changed her name. During the Civil War, in 1862, she moved to Boston and began her career as a sculptor, modeling anti-slavery leaders. Page 326 →The sale of her work enabled her to go to Italy in 1865 to further her study and have access to marble. Although working in the Neoclassic style, her art expressed her concern with slavery and racial oppression. Her work reflected the dignity of her Indian roots and, as she put it, conveyed a “strong sympathy for all women who have struggled and suffered.” She was welcomed in Rome and became part of the circle of independent women artists who included Harriet Hosmer, Charlotte Cushman, and Anne Whitney. Lewis executed many large compositions herself unlike other sculptors, believing this made her work truly original. Though she confronted racial and sexual barriers, she attained professional success both in the U.S. and Europe.
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