Why Does Howardena Pindell’s Artwork Speak so Loud?

Why Does Howardena Pindell’s Artwork Speak so Loud?

 by Seth Houston




“Valerie Cassel Oliver in conversation with Howardena Pindell”: organized by the Platform Spring 2021 Speaker Series, Howardena Pindell describes her journey to becoming an accomplished and respected Black artist in a racist and sexist art world. She recalls the scene of the 60’s in which white male artists flooded the field: They were the rule, the exceptions being that “occasionally a white female artist who was the wife, child, or lover of a white male artist” would be shown. 

     

The exclusion of people of color in the art world is far from the only reason that Pindell’s art is centered on her advocacy. She was the only admitted black student at Boston University in her year. Witnessing the prevailing racist environment within her school, and segregational norms in museums. The artist describes the institutional roadblocks that were placed in front of her, but because she surpassed these obstacles Pindell became an exceptional outlier.

Howardena Pindell, Untitled #4D, 2009



Howardena Pindell by Katherine McMahon, 2017


Marshall McLuhan famously said that “the medium is the message.” In an interview by Rachel Spence from Financial Times, the artist pointed out that once buying root beer with her father she noted that some mugs had red circles in them. When she asked her father the reason for the marks, he told the artist that they were meant for people of color. Her work contains powerful but elusive symbols, which are only revealed when the artist shares her personal experiences. It’s through her usage of symbols and her established history of advocacy and activism which break away Pindell from the archetypes of art.


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