Suzanne Benton

Benton, The Suffragist(Alice Pau), monoprint with Chine collé, Pioneer Activist

2019

Pioneer Activists is an ongoing series of artworks by Suzanne Benton. Consisting largely of monoprints with Chine collé where the artist references suffragists, feminists, writers and educators from the 19th century and beyond. These works embody the artist’s stellar theme of bringing past to present. Anna Julia Cooper, monoprint with Chine collé, 27 x 19 3/4 inches, 2020 1858-1964 An educator, administrator, and social reformer, Anna J. Haywood Cooper was born a slave in Raleigh, North Carolina, and spent fourteen years fighting to gain access to Latin and Greek classes reserved for men at St. Augustine's Normal School and Collegiate Institute, from which she graduated in 1877. She married the Reverend A. C. Cooper at St. Augustine's, where each taught, but after his death in 1881, she began the second phase of her education at Oberlin. That year she joined Mary Eliza Church (Terrell) and Ida A. Gibbs Hunt in the "gentleman's" collegiate course and graduated in 1884. One of the pioneer African-American women who earned a B.A., she returned to Oberlin for an M.A. in Mathematics, which she received in 1887. Continuing her trailblazing for race and gender issues, Cooper wrote the feminist manifesto, A Voice from the South, spoke at feminist and educational conferences, and achieved many honors such as membership in the American Negro Academy. She was a leader in the National Association of Colored Women. Aligned with DuBois's philosophy, she spoke at the 1900 Pan African Conference in London, arguing for self-determination for African-Americans and an end to colonialism in Africa and apartheid in South Africa. Anna Cooper received a Ph.D. at the Sorbonne in 1925 after a decade of study while she also maintained a full-time teaching load. Her thesis was on French policies during slavery. She had been shaping Frelinghuysen University in Washington, D.C., an interdenominational Bible college, and became its president in 1930, at the age of 72. She died in 1964 at the age of 105. In preparation for this ongoing series the artist received images from Legacy Magazine’s photo archive of 19th Century women writers, understanding that she’d obtain permission from each source to use the photos in her artworks. Permissions were received and she began the series in 1992. The Harvard/Radcliffe Schlesinger library then offered Suzanne access to relevant microfiche images that were employed in subsequent works. In addition, the library exhibited the in 1992. The collector Vivien Leone purchased and donated one to the library, and the library subsequently purchased two more. The Women’s Rights Historical Park in Seneca Falls, NY, exhibited the growing series in 1995 during the 75th anniversary of women’s suffrage. The Oberlin College...

Pioneer Activists is an ongoing series of artworks by Suzanne Benton. Consisting largely of monoprints with Chine collé where the artist references suffragists, feminists, writers and educators from the 19th century and beyond. These works embody the artist’s stellar theme of bringing past to present. Carrie Chapman Catt, monoprint with Chine collé, 18 ¾ "x 12 15/16", 1992 (1859 – 1947) The women’s right to vote in the United States is owed largely to the efforts of Carrie Chapman Catt. Born in Wisconsin and educated at Iowa State, Catt left work as a high school principle and later as a newspaper editor to join the fight for women’s suffrage. Skilled as a lecturer, Catt rose rapidly to national leadership, succeeding Susan B. Anthony as president of the National/American Women’s Suffrage Association in 1900. Catt’s pressure on President Woodrow Wilson and her tireless work to secure state ratification, culminated in the Nineteenth Amendment’s adoption in 1920. Following suffrage work, Catt devoted herself to peace and disarmament issues, serving as chair of the Committee on the Cause and Cure of War. The Women’s Rights Historical Park exhibited the growing series in 1995 during the 75th anniversary of women’s suffrage. The Oberlin College...

Pioneer Activists is an ongoing series of artworks by Suzanne Benton. Consisting largely of monoprints with Chine collé where the artist references suffragists, feminists, writers and educators from the 19th century and beyond. These works embody the artist’s stellar theme of bringing past to present. Susan B. Anthony the Elder, monoprint with Chine collé, 18 ½ x 13 ¼ inches, 2020 From Wikipedia Susan B. Anthony (born Susan Anthony; February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906) was an American social reformer and women's rights activist who played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement. Born into a Quaker family committed to social equality, she collected anti-slavery petitions at the age of 17. In 1856, she became the New York state agent for the American Anti-Slavery Society. In 1851, she met Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who became her lifelong friend and co-worker in social reform activities, primarily in the field of women's rights. In 1852, they founded the New York Women's State Temperance Society after Anthony was prevented from speaking at a temperance conference because she was female. In 1863, they founded the Women's Loyal National League, which conducted the largest petition drive in United States history...

Pioneer Activists is an ongoing series of artworks by Suzanne Benton. Consisting largely of monoprints with Chine collé where the artist references suffragists, feminists, writers and educators from the 19th century and beyond. These works embody the artist’s stellar theme of bringing past to present. The Spirit of Hope (Alice Paul) One of the prime dedicated vocal leaders of the women’s suffrage movement in the twentieth century, Alice Paul actively campaigned for the passage of the 19th Amendment...

Linda Stein, Susan B. Anthony 786 - Signed Limited Edition Feminist Contemporary Art Print Linda Stein considers her Women of Courage Mood Portraits series a...

Bold, slightly abstracted etching of an elderly woman titled "Amazing Grace" by Claudette McElroy (American, b. 1943). Signed on verso "Claudette McElroy" in the lower right corner, ...

Linda Stein, Heroes 842 - Signed Limited Edition Feminist Contemporary Fine Art Print Linda Stein considers her Women of Courage Mood Portraits series a feminist labor of love. Each portrait is made by hand with watercolors and gouache paints, then converted into a limited-edition, fine-art original print with archival inks. Heroes 842 highlights twelve of Stein's heroes: Susan B. Anthony, Bella Abzug...

RARE & BOLDLY GRAPHIC AMERICAN SUFFRAGETTE POSTER, COMMISSIONED BY THE EMPIRE STATE CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE, CARRIE CHAPMAN CATT’S GROUP, circa 1915 Extremely rare and boldly graphic Suf...