Benny Andrews facts for kids

Benny Andrews (November 13, 1930 – November 10, 2006) was an amazing African-American artist, activist, and teacher. He was known for his powerful paintings that often used pieces of fabric and other materials.

Andrews also worked hard for social justice. He helped create groups like the Black Emergency Cultural Coalition. These groups fought for more African-American artists to be shown in big art museums. He also started art programs for people in prisons. Andrews taught art at Queens College for 30 years and received many important awards for his work.

Benny Andrews' Early Life and Education

Benny Andrews was born on November 13, 1930, in a small place called Plainview, Georgia. He was one of ten children. His parents, George and Viola Andrews, were sharecroppers. This meant they farmed land owned by someone else and shared the crops.

His parents taught him how important education, religion, and being able to express himself were. Benny's father was also an artist. He taught himself to draw and paint and was known as the "Dot Man."

School Days and Challenges

Even though his parents valued education, Benny sometimes had to miss school. He needed to help them pick or plant cotton. He went to Plainview Elementary School, which was a small log cabin.

Most kids in his community didn't go to school past seventh grade. But Benny's parents let him and his siblings go to high school during the winter. He was the first in his family to graduate from high school in 1948.

College and Military Service

Benny earned a scholarship to Fort Valley College, a black state college in Georgia. He got this for his work with a group called 4-H. However, the college didn't have many art classes.

After his scholarship ended, Benny joined the U.S. Air Force. He served as a staff sergeant in Korea from 1950 to 1954. He sent his earnings home to help his family.

Becoming an Artist in Chicago

After the Air Force, Benny used the G.I. Bill to attend the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. This was a big step because he had never been to a museum before!

There, he learned about abstract expressionism. His teacher, Boris Margo, helped him find his own unique art style. Benny started mixing painting with collage techniques. He also worked as an illustrator and sold sketches of Chicago's jazz scene.

Benny Andrews' Art Career and Teaching

After finishing art school in 1958, Benny moved to New York City. He worked at the Metropolitan Museum of Art making Christmas cards to support his family.

His art quickly gained attention. He had his first solo art show in 1960. In 1962, The New York Times praised his first solo show in New York City.

Important Artworks and Fellowships

Benny received the John Hay Whitney Fellowship in 1965 and 1966. He used the money to go back to Georgia and create his Autobiographical Series of paintings.

In 1971, he painted No More Games. This artwork showed the struggles of black artists and became a symbol of his fight for fairness in the art world.

Teaching Art to Others

Benny loved to teach. He started teaching art classes in New York in 1966. From 1968 to 1997, he taught at Queens College, City University of New York. He worked with a program that helped students who needed extra support.

In 1971, Benny started teaching art at the Manhattan Detention Complex, a prison. His art program for prisoners became a famous model for other programs across the country. He even curated an art show of prisoner's work at the Studio Museum in Harlem.

Benny also became the art program director for the Inner City Roundtable of Youths. This group was made of former gang members who wanted to stop youth violence in New York City.

Benny Andrews' Fight for Social Justice

Benny Andrews was a strong voice for social justice. He believed art could help make the world a better place.

Founding the Black Emergency Cultural Coalition

In 1969, Benny helped start the Black Emergency Cultural Coalition (BECC). This group protested an art exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The exhibit was called Harlem on My Mind but didn't include any art by African-American artists. Also, no African-Americans were involved in planning the show.

The BECC then convinced the Whitney Museum to create a show featuring African-American artists. But they later boycotted that show too, for similar reasons.

Supporting Black Artists

From 1982 to 1984, Benny was the director of visual arts for the National Endowment for the Arts. In this important role, he made sure that talented black artists received grants and support. This helped many artists who might not have been noticed otherwise.

In 2006, Benny traveled to the Gulf Coast to work on an art project with children. These children had been forced to leave their homes because of Hurricane Katrina.

Benny Andrews' Unique Art Style

Benny Andrews was a figural painter, meaning he painted people and scenes. His style was expressionist, which means he used strong feelings and colors in his art. He often painted about suffering and unfairness, like the Holocaust, the forced movement of Native Americans, and Hurricane Katrina.

Influences and Techniques

In the 1960s, Benny found his unique style, which often included collage. He was also influenced by surrealism and Southern folk art. He believed in using a "minimalist" style, focusing on how little he could paint to make a big impact.

His drawings were described as "delicate, subtle, and intimate." They often drew from his past life in Georgia and his social life in New York. He used Christian imagery and ideas about humanism to speak out against false religion, unfair governments, sexism, and war.

Benny used different materials to show American scenes and people. He wanted his art to show the dignity of the people he painted and help bring about social change.

Where to See His Art

Benny Andrews' artwork is displayed in many famous museums. You can find his pieces at:

• The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City
• The Art Institute of Chicago
• The Studio Museum in Harlem in New York City
• The High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia
• The Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC
• The Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans, Louisiana

Benny Andrews' Family Life and Legacy

Benny Andrews married Mary Ellen Jones Smith, a photographer, in 1957. They had three children: Christopher, Thomas, and Julia. They later divorced in 1986.

In 1986, Benny married another artist named Nene Humphrey. They had met at MacDowell, an artists' retreat.

Benny Andrews passed away from cancer on November 10, 2006, at the age of 75. His art and his activism continue to inspire people today.

Honors and Awards

Benny Andrews received many important awards for his art and his work for social justice:

• John Hay Whitney Fellowship - 1965-66
• New York Council for the Arts Fellowship - 1971-1981
• MacDowell Fellowships - 1972-1973, 1975-1978
• National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship - 1974-1981
• O'Hara Museum Prize, Tokyo - 1976
• Bellagio Fellowship, Rockefeller Foundation - 1990
• Member of the National Academy of Design - 1997
• President’s Award to The Benny Andrews Foundation, United Negro College Fund - 2010

Selected Collections

• Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN