Augusta Savage

Hello! My name is Augusta Savage, and I was a sculptor. Even when I was a little girl, I loved to create things. I was born on February 29th, 1892, in a small town in Florida called Green Cove Springs. Our town had wonderful, sticky red clay, and that was my favorite toy. I didn’t have fancy art supplies, so I would dig up handfuls of that clay and spend hours shaping it into little animals, people, and anything else I could imagine. My father was a minister and didn't think making 'graven images' was a good use of my time, but I just couldn't stop. The feeling of the clay in my hands and watching a new shape come to life was like magic to me.

When I grew up, I knew I had to follow my dream of being an artist. In the early 1920s, I took a big, brave step and moved all the way to New York City! I was accepted into a wonderful, tuition-free art school called the Cooper Union in 1921. I worked so hard that I finished the four-year course in only three years. I was so excited in 1923 when I was chosen for a special summer art program in France. But then, my heart broke. The committee found out I was a Black woman and told me I couldn't go. It was terribly unfair, but something amazing happened. A man named Herman MacNeil, who was on the committee, was so upset that he invited me to study with him instead. It taught me that even when some doors close, others can open if you don't give up.

My dream of studying in Europe didn't die. I kept working, and in 1929, I won a special scholarship that finally allowed me to travel to Paris! It was incredible to see all the famous sculptures and learn new techniques. When I returned to America, I settled in a neighborhood in New York City called Harlem. It was a special time known as the Harlem Renaissance, when Black artists, writers, and musicians were creating amazing work. I wanted to help other young artists find their voice, so in 1932, I opened my own art school, the Savage Studio of Arts and Crafts. It became a place where anyone with a dream could come to learn and create.

My biggest project came in 1937 when I was asked to create a giant sculpture for the 1939 New York World's Fair. It was a huge honor! I decided to make a piece inspired by a beautiful song called 'Lift Every Voice and Sing,' which is a song of hope and strength. My sculpture was 16 feet tall and called 'The Harp.' It showed twelve singers as the strings of a giant harp, held in the hand of God. Millions of people saw it at the fair, and it was one of the most popular exhibits. I made it out of plaster because that's what I could afford. Sadly, after the fair, I didn't have the money to cast it in bronze, so it was destroyed. It was sad to see it go, but I was proud that my art had touched so many people.

After the fair, I continued to teach and create. Later in my life, I moved to a quiet town in upstate New York to enjoy the countryside and my family. I lived to be 70 years old. Though many of my sculptures are gone, my most important creations were the students I taught. I helped open doors for hundreds of Black artists who came after me, showing them that their voices and their art mattered. I am remembered not just for the art I made with my hands, but for the community I helped build and the dreams I helped inspire.