Mary
Edmonia Lewis, known more commonly as Edmonia Lewis, was the first
professional sculptor of African and Native American descent in
America. She created Neoclassical sculptures deeply embedded with
racial themes and symbols. Lewis's most celebrated work is her Death
of Cleopatra (shown below). This
sculpture was displayed as a part of the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial
Exposition, where Lewis was one of a handful of women showcasing
their work. Of these few women, Lewis was the only one who was not
white, making her a paramount that paved the way for women artists of
color in the art world. The strong, ethnically-aware subject matter
of Death of Cleopatra makes
its inclusion in the exposition even more profound.
