Nikky Finney facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Nikky Finney
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | Lynn Carol Finney August 26, 1957 Conway, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Occupation | Poet and academic |
| Education | Atlanta University |
| Alma mater | Talladega College; |
| Notable awards | PEN American Open Book Award National Book Award for Poetry |
| Parents | Ernest A. Finney, Jr. and Frances Davenport Finney |
Nikky Finney (born Lynn Carol Finney on August 26, 1957) is an American poet. She was born in Conway, South Carolina. For twenty years, she was a professor at the University of Kentucky. In 2013, she moved to the University of South Carolina. She is known for her four books of poetry and a collection of short stories. Finney supports social justice and keeping cultural traditions alive. She won the 2011 National Book Award for her poetry book Head Off & Split.
Contents
About Nikky Finney's Early Life
Nikky Finney is one of three children. She is the only daughter of Ernest A. Finney, Jr. and Frances Davenport Finney. Her father was a civil rights attorney and later became the Chief Justice of South Carolina. Her mother was an elementary school teacher.
Her Father's Work for Civil Rights
Nikky's father, Ernest Finney, Jr., worked as a civil rights lawyer. In 1961, he helped the Friendship 9. These were Black junior college students. They were arrested for trying to end segregation at a lunch counter in Rock Hill, South Carolina. Later, in 1994, her father became the first African-American Chief Justice of South Carolina since the Reconstruction period. Both of Nikky's brothers are also lawyers in South Carolina.
Family Roots and Themes
Both of Finney's parents grew up on family farms. Her father's family farm was in Virginia. Her mother's family farm was in Newberry, South Carolina. Because of this, the connection between African-Americans and the land is a common theme in Finney's writing.
Nikky's Education and Nickname
Finney first went to Catholic grade school. Then she attended public schools in South Carolina. This was during a time when schools were working to become integrated. Her grandmother, Beulah Lenorah Butler Davenport, and the nearby South Carolina sea were very important to her when she was young.
She loved reading books as a child. She also started writing poetry. She got the nickname "Nikky" probably because of the famous poet Nikki Giovanni. Nikki Giovanni later became a friend and mentor to Finney. After graduating from Sumter High School in 1975, Finney went to Talladega College. This is a historically Black college in Alabama. There, she was guided by poet Dr. Gloria Wade Gayles.
Starting Her Artistic Journey
After college, Finney began her career as a photographer in 1979. She wanted to record the important contributions of African-Americans to American art and culture. She continued to develop her skills as a poet and artist on her own.
Finney also studied at Atlanta University. She worked in the African-American Studies department. She joined a writing group called the Pamoja Writing Collective. This group was led by Toni Cade Bambara. Finney also studied the poetry and art of the Black Arts Movement. She later decided to focus more on creative work. She returned to Talladega to work as a photographer. She also traveled to Nairobi, Kenya, in 1985. She covered a big UN conference for the National Black Women's Health Project.
Nikky Finney's Career as a Writer
Nikky Finney completed her first book of poems, On Wings Made of Gauze, in Atlanta. Poet Nikki Giovanni helped her get the book published. It was released by William Morrow in 1985.
Moving and Publishing More Books
After her first book, Finney moved to the Bay Area. She worked on various social causes and continued writing poetry. In 1989, she became a visiting writer at the University of Kentucky. She joined the permanent faculty there in 1993.
Her second book of poetry, Rice, was published in 1995. In 1997, Rice won a PEN American Open Book Award. This book helped her gain many followers. Her story collection, Heartwood, was published in 1998. It was created for students learning to read.
Teaching and New Works
In 1999, Finney took a break from the University of Kentucky. She taught at Berea College, which was the first college in the South to welcome both Black and white students. After returning to the University of Kentucky, her third poetry book, The World is Round, came out in 2003. In 2005, she became a full professor. She also directed the African American Studies and Research Program. From 2007 to 2009, she was a writer-in-residence at Smith College.
Finney also edited a book called The Ringing Ear: Black Poets Lean South. This book was published in 2007. It featured the work of one hundred African-American poets from the South.
National Book Award Winner
Finney's fourth book of poems, Head Off & Split, was published in 2011. On October 12, 2011, it was announced as a finalist for the National Book Awards. She won the 2011 National Book Award for Poetry on November 16, 2011. Her acceptance speech was very powerful. The host, John Lithgow, called it "the best acceptance speech for anything that I've ever heard in my life."
Head Off & Split was chosen as the book for first-year students at the University of Maryland in 2015–16. This allowed students and teachers to discuss important topics using one shared text. Finney also wrote a new poem for the campus. She is also a writer in the 2019 book New Daughters of Africa.
Finney is a founder of the Affrilachian Poets. This is a group of writers in Lexington, Kentucky. She also helps guide younger poets through the Cave Canem Foundation.
Awards and Honors
- 1999: Kentucky Arts Council, Al Smith Fellowship
- 1999: PEN/Beyond Margins Award, for Rice
- 2002: Hall of Fame for Writers of African Descent
- 2002: Honorary Doctorate of Humanities, Claflin University
- 2004: Benjamin Franklin Awards, First Place for Poetry, for The World Is Round
- 2011: National Book Award for Poetry, for Head Off & Split
- 2013: Induction into the South Carolina Academy of Authors
Works
- On Wings Made of Gauze, W. Morrow, 1985, ISBN: 978-0-688-04796-2
- Rice, Sister Vision, 1995, ISBN: 978-0-920813-21-8
- The World is Round, InnerLight Pub., 2003, ISBN: 978-0-9714890-4-2
- Head Off & Split: Poems, Northwestern University Press, 2011, ISBN: 978-0-8101-5216-8
- Lovechild’s Hot Bed of Occasional Poetry: Poems and Artifacts, Northwestern University Press, 2020, ISBN: 978-0-8101-4201-5
As editor
- The Ringing Ear: Black Poets Lean South, University of Georgia Press, 2007, ISBN: 978-0-8203-2922-2
See also
In Spanish: Nikky Finney para niños
