Dinner at Aunt Connie's House by Faith Ringgold

Have each student choose a person to feature, paint their portrait, and then write a little bit about their lives from their voice as the book does. This painting and the related book would be a great project to assign your students. It would be great as part of your home or classroom library as a reference, and the artworks inside are gorgeous! Portrait Project I would say that while this is a great book, it’s not great for a read-aloud because it has a little too much information. The book is a little long, but it is a great introduction to some important women. Each painting comes to life and tells the young girl about her life. The aunt’s artworks are of portraits of influential African American women. In this book, a young girl visits her painter aunt’s house for dinner and to see her artworks. Related Book – Dinner at Aunt Connie’s HouseĪ great book to accompany this artwork is Dinner at Aunt Connie’s House, also by Faith Ringgold. I have a letter printable in my worksheet bundle, and some of the other character analysis worksheets from the bundle would work really well with this artwork. Have students imagine what she might be thinking and write a letter from her point of view about her experience spending time with these amazing women. Have students imagine what it would be like to be the fictional Willa Marie Simone. What could the sunflowers represent? Creative Thinking Activity Why do you think the artist chose to include Van Gogh?Ĥ. Why did the artist invent Willa Marie Simone? Why did she put her among these “superwomen”? How does the artist make Willa Marie different?ģ. What could this quilt symbolize or represent?Ģ. If you’d like to use this artwork in your classroom or home, here are some activities, discussion questions, and resources. This would be a great starting point for discussion of this artwork with your students.

The text on the painting says: “an international symbol of our dedication to change the world”. The ninth woman is a fictional character invented by Ringed named Willa Marie Simone. These women are influential leaders and important figures in American history including (from upper left) Madam Walker, Sojourner Truth, Ida Wells, Fannie Lou Hammer, Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Ella Baker.

In this artwork, The Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles, Ringgold takes Van Gogh’s famous sunflowers (and Van Gogh himself) and introduces them to a team of women, working together to make a quilt. Her artwork is especially focused on African American women. Through her quilt paintings, Ringgold tells important stories and makes political statements. |a Dinner at Aunt Connie's is even more special than usual when Melody meets not only her new adopted cousin but twelve inspiring African-American women, who step out of their portraits and join the family for dinner.Faith Ringgold, The Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles, 1991

Dinner at Aunt Connie's House by Faith Ringgold