Top 11 Quotes & Sayings by Edmonia Lewis

Explore popular quotes and sayings by an American sculptor Edmonia Lewis.
Last updated on November 22, 2024.
Edmonia Lewis

Mary Edmonia Lewis, also known as "Wildfire", was an American sculptor, of mixed African-American and Native American heritage. Born free in Upstate New York, she worked for most of her career in Rome, Italy. She was the first African-American and Native American sculptor to achieve national and then international prominence. She began to gain prominence in the United States during the Civil War; at the end of the 19th century, she remained the only Black woman artist who had participated in and been recognized to any extent by the American artistic mainstream. In 2002, the scholar Molefi Kete Asante named Edmonia Lewis on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.

Some praise me because I am a colored girl, and I don't want that kind of praise. I had rather you would point out my defects, for that will teach me something.
My features I take from my father, but my spirit, my industry and perseverance I get from my Indian mother.
One day, I saw a statue of Benjamin Franklin, and I said to myself, 'I can do that kind of work, too.' — © Edmonia Lewis
One day, I saw a statue of Benjamin Franklin, and I said to myself, 'I can do that kind of work, too.'
I have a strong sympathy for all women who have struggled and suffered.
I thought I knew everything when I came to Rome, but I soon found I had everything to learn.
Until I was twelve years old, I led this wandering life, fishing, swimming, and making moccasins.
There is nothing so beautiful as the free forest. To catch a fish when you are hungry, cut the boughs of a tree, make a fire to roast it, and eat it in the open air, is the greatest of all luxuries. I would not stay a week pent up in cities if it were not for my passion for art.
Sometimes the times were dark and the outlook was lonesome, but where there is a will, there is a way. I pitched in and dug at my work until now I am where I am.
No, I have not a drop of what they call white blood in my veins. My father was a full blooded Negro, and my mother was a full blooded Chippewa.
I was practically driven to Rome in order to obtain the opportunities for art culture and to find a social atmosphere where I was not constantly reminded of my color. The land of liberty had no room for a colored sculptor.
I don't want you to praise me...Some praise me because I am a colored girl, and I don't want that kind of praise. I had rather you would point out my defects, for that will teach me something.
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