Category: Ruth Asawa

Anni Albers (1899-1994) led the weaving and textiles workshop at Black Mountain College from 1933-1949. She and her husband Josef were invited to the college in 1933 after the closure of the Bauhaus, where Josef was a professor and Anni a student, by the Nazis. Well into the 1940s, Black Mountain provided a welcoming refuge… Continue reading Women of Black Mountain College | Anni Albers

“I didn’t think it would affect me, but it has. That’s what makes it Black Mountain. It’s still living.” – Mary Parks Washington Mary Parks Washington (1924-2019) attended Black Mountain College’s 1946 summer institute, where she met with Ruth Asawa and Gwendolyn Knight, among others. whom she remained friends with. She arrived from the very… Continue reading Women of Black Mountain College | Mary Parks Washington

“Are you gonna be an earthy person, practical, bound to earth, or are you going to be a dreamer, a visionary? I don’t have to choose. I am both, and I live in the crossing point.” – MC Richards The words of poet and potter MC Richards (1916-1999) go to the heart of the ethos… Continue reading Women of Black Mountain College | Karen Karnes and MC Richards

“You could just put your imagination into practice.” – Vera Baker Williams Vera Williams (1927- 2015) was one of few to formally graduate from Black Mountain College, with a graphic design project creating signage for the college. Author, illustrator, activist and educator, her life was endlessly creative. From the 1970s she produced children’s books, often… Continue reading Women of Black Mountain College | Vera Williams

Artist Gwendolyn Knight (1913-2005) came to Black Mountain College in 1946 with her husband Jacob Lawrence. Not officially a teacher, she spent lots of time engaging with students, even teaching informal dance lessons. In the 50s she would study dance in New York with Martha Graham’s company. An expressionist painter with a strong interest in… Continue reading Women of Black Mountain College | Gwendolyn Knight

Contralto singer Carol Brice (1918-1985) came to Black Mountain College as a guest teacher in 1945, a year after Alma Stone Williams had been invited as a student, paving the way for integration at the college. Other guests had been artist Willem de Kooning, composer John Cage and dancer Merce Cunningham. Brice arrived with her… Continue reading Women of Black Mountain College | Carol Brice

“At Black Mountain, there was individual revolution.” – Hazel Larsen Archer Photographer and educator Larsen (1921-2001) went to Black Mountain College in 1944, and became its first full-time photography teacher in 1949, teaching significant students including Robert Rauschenberg, Cy Twombly and Stan VanDerBeek. Contracting polio aged 10, she spent 3 years in hospital before going… Continue reading Women of Black Mountain College | Hazel Larsen Archer

“I have sought to be a constant learner. The arts contain more than enough to fill a lifetime of open eyes and open ears.” – Alma Stone Williams Alma Stone Williams (1921-2013) was a musician, educator, and pioneer in racial integration. In 1944, she was the first Black student at Black Mountain College, and the… Continue reading Women of Black Mountain College | Alma Stone Williams