Happy Birthday Tell Your Own Story Benny Andrews
🎂Benny Andrews, born November 13, 1930 in rural Plainview, Georgia, was a painter, collagist, educator and activist. From his early childhood poverty years in Plainview, Georgia, Andrews, the “survivor” and “protest artist” won a two year Scholarship to attend Fort Valley State University in Georgia; did a stint in the United States Air Force; then enrolled in the prestigious School of the Art Institute of Chicago. After earning his BFA degree Benny moved to the lower east side of Manhattan where he began painting and teaching. In order to earn money to support his family, Benny even worked on producing Christmas cards for the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
In the 1960s, Benny’s figural and minimal stylings, as well as, his paintings and collages caught the attention of the power brokers in the art world. During this time, he received a John Hay Whitney Fellowship and a CAPS Award (College of American Pathologists) in NYC. His 1969 painting “Did the Bear Sit Under A Tree?” still resonates in the art world today.
In the 1969, Benny began his activism co-founding the Black Emergency Cultural Coalition. He joined other African-American artists in organized protest demonstrations against New York City’s major museums for their exclusion and under representation of African-American artists.
Below are informative-must-watch-videos that not only talk about Benny’s creative output, but also, about his journey from Plainview, Georgia; his beliefs in his cultural origins; and the beginnings of his activism.
Benny is remembered, too, for his inspirational work with children, teens, gang members; his dedication as a teacher at colleges; and his art teachings to inmates in New York City prisons.
Benny Andrews papers, 1940-2006 are archived at: Emory University • Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library • Atlanta, GA 30322 • 404-727-6887 • rose.library@emory.edu.
Obituary Article — BENNY ANDREWS: 1930-2006: Native Georgian illustrated America’s soul.
Watch Colored Frames [Documentary]*: A look back at the last fifty-eight years in African American art, “Colored Frames is an unflinching exploration of influences, inspirations and experiences of black artists. Beginning at the height of the Civil Rights Era and leading up to the present, it is a naked and truthful look at often ignored artists and their progeny. Featuring: Benny Andrews, Gustave Blache III, Nanette Carter, Ed Clark, Adger Cowans, Francks Deceus, Gordon James, Wangechi Mutu, Howardena Pindell, Dianne Smith, Ann Tanksley, TAFA, and others!”*
Flag Day Credit and Painting data: Gift of the Honorable Joseph P. Carroll and Mrs. Carroll