Varnette Honeywood facts for kids

Varnette Patricia Honeywood (December 27, 1950 – September 12, 2010) was a talented American artist. She was a painter, writer, and businesswoman. Her colorful paintings and collages showed scenes from African-American life. Many of her artworks were featured on popular TV shows like The Cosby Show. Camille Cosby and Bill Cosby discovered her art and began collecting it. Her paintings also appeared on other TV series, including A Different World, Amen, and 227.

Early Life and Education

Varnette Honeywood was born in Los Angeles on December 27, 1950. Her parents, Stepney and Lovie Honeywood, were both elementary school teachers. They had moved to California from Louisiana and Mississippi.

Varnette loved art and studied it in college. In 1972, she earned her first degree in Art from Spelman College in Atlanta. Spelman College is a very important school. It was the first college in the United States specifically for Black women. Varnette later showed her art there in 1987. She continued her education at the University of Southern California. In 1974, she earned her master's degree in education from USC.

Starting Her Art Career

After college, Varnette used her education skills to help others. She taught multicultural arts and crafts to children in public schools. This was part of a special program from the University of Southern California.

Varnette's art was inspired by famous artists like Romare Bearden and Jacob Lawrence. She focused on showing Black Americans in their daily lives. Her paintings often featured family and social gatherings. Her childhood visits to relatives in the South, her time at Spelman College, and a trip to Nigeria in 1977 all gave her ideas for her artwork.

Varnette and her sister Stephanie started a company called Black Lifestyles. They created greeting cards with Varnette's bright, colorful paintings. These cards showed everyday scenes of African Americans. It was one of the first companies to specialize in greeting cards with Black themes.

Her Art in Hollywood

Varnette Honeywood's art became famous in Hollywood. Camille Cosby saw Varnette's work on note cards and loved it. She and her husband, Bill Cosby, began collecting Varnette's paintings. This led to Varnette's artwork being shown on The Cosby Show. Her 1974 painting "Birthday" was often seen in the Huxtable family's living room. She even created a special painting for the show's first episode. Different examples of her art were displayed throughout the show's many seasons.

Varnette also created a large mural for Bill Cosby's TV show Kids Say the Darndest Things. Her art appeared in many other television series, including My Wife and Kids, Smart Guy, The Steve Harvey Show, Gullah Gullah Island, Golden Girls, Melrose Place, Amen, 227, and A Different World.

She also worked closely with Bill Cosby on the Little Bill book series. She created the characters and illustrations for the books. These books later became the basis for the popular TV series of the same name. Bill Cosby praised Varnette for showing positive images of African-American life. He said her art showed "teenagers doing homework, a family cooking a meal, girls doing their hair," instead of focusing on sad or difficult topics.

Varnette Honeywood was featured in a film called Varnette Honeywood: a study of a young artist. She was also included in the book Contemporary Black biography: Volume 54 in 2006.

Later Life and Legacy

Varnette Honeywood passed away on September 12, 2010, in Los Angeles. She was 59 years old and had been battling cancer for two years.

After her death, her family started the Varnette P. Honeywood Foundation. This foundation helps people who are affected by reproductive cancers. The foundation also supports talented art students and artists. It aims to help artists whose work makes a positive difference in society.

Varnette Honeywood's artwork continues to be seen today. It appears on many TV shows, movies, and book covers. She is remembered by artists for her important role in shaping how Black visual culture is seen. Her art helped create positive and strong images of African-American life.