Artworks

Free, White, and 21, 1980

  • Artist

    Howardena Pindell

  • Title

    Free, White, and 21

  • Date

    1980

  • Medium

    Single channel video

  • Dimensions

    TRT: 00:12:15

  • Credit line

    The Studio Museum in Harlem; Museum purchase

  • Object Number

    2006.7

Howardena Pindell begins Free, White, and 21, her first video work, recounting encounters of racism and sexism that she and her mother had faced. Her narration is interrupted by another figure (the artist disguised as a white woman) who acts as an avatar to convey other voices. This avatar invalidates Pindell’s accounts of discrimination, at one point exclaiming, “You really must be paranoid.” The dialogue between the two figures underscores the double discrimination faced by Black women, who are oppressed for both their race and their gender. Creating the video encouraged Pindell to continue incorporating the autobiographical into her practice, which includes painting, sculpture, and performance.


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Artworks

Free, White, and 21, 1980

  • Artist

    Howardena Pindell

  • Title

    Free, White, and 21

  • Date

    1980

  • Medium

    Single channel video

  • Dimensions

    TRT: 00:12:15

  • Credit line

    The Studio Museum in Harlem; Museum purchase

  • Object Number

    2006.7

Howardena Pindell begins Free, White, and 21, her first video work, recounting encounters of racism and sexism that she and her mother had faced. Her narration is interrupted by another figure (the artist disguised as a white woman) who acts as an avatar to convey other voices. This avatar invalidates Pindell’s accounts of discrimination, at one point exclaiming, “You really must be paranoid.” The dialogue between the two figures underscores the double discrimination faced by Black women, who are oppressed for both their race and their gender. Creating the video encouraged Pindell to continue incorporating the autobiographical into her practice, which includes painting, sculpture, and performance.


Explore further