Written by Flora Gilchrist
Textile art, which includes (but is not limited to) embroidery, knitting, crocheting, and quilting, has been described throughout history as a gendered feminine practice confined to the domestic sphere and passive entertainment. Often dismissed as a traditional feminine pastime with no political weight, textile art has previously been overlooked, undervalued, and negated from the mainstream art historical canon. Whenever textile art was mobilised and used for a political reason, it was often to perpetuate patriarchal structures, such as in the First World War, where women were told to knit socks for soldiers to contribute to the war effort, demonstrated by the First World War slogan of ‘Uncle Sam wants you to knit’. However, as the twentieth century progressed, textile art began to be utilised by activists, harbouring more political dimensions such as contributing to the civil rights movement, the feminist movement, and the AIDS activist movement. Textile art became an outlet for political frustrations, with artist Faith Ringgold questioning American Institutions and ill-treatment of African Americans. Through exploring the politically charged work The Flag is Bleeding #2 (America Collection #6), first created in 1967 and then reimagined in 1997, it becomes increasingly obvious that the medium of textiles has transformed from a passive pastime to a form of political activism.
To extract the politically charged messages behind Ringgold’s piece, it is important to first look at the piece visually. The Flag is Bleeding #2 is a multimedia piece made up of an acrylic painting incorporated with a quilted and stitched background. Most of the canvas depicts the American Flag; however, instead of the usual generic straight lines delineating the flag, there is blood dripping down. On the left-hand side, there is a black woman standing with two naked children hugging her legs. The woman is painted behind the American stars of the flag, and so much of her face is distorted. She wears a blue and white dress that is dripping with blood from her chest and travels all the way down to the floor. Lastly, the piece is in the format of a pictorial quilt telling a story, thus going against conventional ideals that quilting is merely meant to be for decoration. By charging this quilt with countless societal questions and messages, Ringgold is proving that textile art does not have to be docile and can indeed contribute to political activism by exposing societal problems.
Quilting has long been categorised as a submissive gendered activity; however, Ringgold subverts these perceptions by creating an art piece that questions the very foundations of American politics. Textile art has a gendered history, with women being idealised in the domestic sphere and confined to household tasks such as knitting and needlework. In colonial America, many girls learned how to form the letters of the alphabet not by writing but by stitching letters on samples. Thus, historically, textile art was used as a tool to confine women to acts of domesticated labour. However, Ringgold’s art completely reverses this notion of the submissive female body. Instead of being confined to the gendered version of textiles, Ringgold uses quilting as a puzzle piece in her broader questioning of black women’s rights and their subordination in American society. Ringgold depicts a woman holding two vulnerable children; she is expected to be a mother and the perfect role model, yet she herself is segregated and marginalised because of her skin colour and gender. Ringgold has two versions of this artwork, with the first made in 1967 and then reimagined in 1997. Throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, women remained discriminated against, with the rights to abortion and adequate healthcare only granted in 1973 following Roe v. Wade. By incorporating brightly coloured quilts around the border of the American flag, Ringgold utilises a technique that is usually gendered and deemed harmless, repurposing its meaning into one that is inherently political. Therefore, Ringgold utilises textile art to contribute to political activism, with the concepts within the frame questioning the very foundations of American rights and civilisation.
The Flag is Bleeding #2, Faith Ringgold
Radical textiles are so often associated with feminism and the desire to subvert gender stereotypes; however, the term often negates the racial undertones evident in many textile art pieces. It is also essential to discuss the intersectionality of Ringgold’s status in America as an African American woman to understand the political message behind her work. Not only has textile art been gendered, but it can also be considered a highly racialised art form. Textile art is entrenched in a deeper colonial history, with fashion being used as part of the ‘civilising mission’ whereby European dress was forced upon indigenous populations. Therefore, textiles were used to subordinate those deemed racially inferior, with different colours and clothes being ascribed to certain groups. The choice of a quilt as her preferred medium is a purposeful act of defiance. Ringgold wishes to reclaim the oppressions enacted on the black female body, referencing a deep cultural trauma. By specifically depicting a black woman covered in blood and trapped behind the stars of the American flag, Ringgold calls into question the political, socio-economic, and constitutional imprisonment, disparities, and disadvantages that African Americans endured throughout the twentieth century. With the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, African Americans were only just starting to be treated as American citizens. Ringgold herself was involved in the civil rights movement, participating in a civil rights demonstration in 1958. Moreover, Ringgold states that she desired to ‘make a statement […] about the civil rights movement’. Ringgold’s desire to protest connects to the political undertones of her work. Therefore, Ringgold’s quilted piece effectively integrates into the political climate of her time, advocating for fundamental changes to the American system.
Finally, to fully understand how Ringgold’s art contributes to political activism, it is important to note Ringgold’s piece as a form of social and institutional critique. Textile art was largely excluded from the art history canon, so by using a lesser-appreciated technique to display a political message, Ringgold is criticising the exclusion of textiles from the mainstream art world. Textile art is often deemed as an alternative medium, straying away from the traditional and providing a space outside of the white cube space for experimentation. Therefore, Ringgold’s second version of This Flag is Bleeding attempts to recast the role of textile art, emphasising its potential as a politically charged art form. By portraying the American flag (usually a symbol of democracy and liberty) as bleeding, Ringgold subverts the idealised ‘American dream’ and goes against the aestheticised nature of textiles. However, textiles do not always need to be political, as evidenced by Rozika Parker’s 1984 essay, which argues that craft methods have been appropriated and reused over time for all kinds of reasons. Bryan Wilson extends this argument, explaining that ‘craft itself is neither inherently conservative nor progressive’ exemplifying the fact that not all textile art has political undertones and that very often, the textiles can be used for both consumerist purposes and fast fashion but also for anti-consumerist aims. Wilson’s explanation denotes the malleability of textiles as an art form, as a tool used by differing protest groups, or as decoration. In addition, just because an art piece is created by someone who is an ethnic minority, does not necessarily mean their piece should be considered political or contributed towards political activism. It is only because Ringgold reclaims the historically gendered and racialised art of textiles specifically to question American society that it can be considered inherently political. Therefore, textile art alone should not be considered political activism, but rather, the political dimensions that the art itself evokes are what transforms textile art into political activism.
To conclude, after reviewing Ringgold’s This Flag is Bleeding, textile art can indeed be repurposed to convey a political message. Ringgold transforms the medium of quilting into a political weapon that questions the black body, female agency, and the hierarchy within the art world. Textile art is very often deemed merely a feminine technique, but with deeper exploration, we can see that this is not the case; textile art has a deeply racialised history and can be used for multiple political beliefs and agendas. These discoveries mean that the art of textiles is extremely fluid, therefore being able to contribute to political activism in the way that the artist sees fit.
Bibliography
Auslander, Leora. ‘Deploying Material Culture to Write the History of Gender and Sexuality: The Example of Clothing and Textiles,’ Women, Gender, History, no. 40 (2014), 157-78.
Bryan-Wilson, Julia. ‘Knit Dissent,’ Contemporary Art 1989 to the present, (John Wiley & Sons), 245-53.
Chambers, Paula. ‘Materialising Dissent – Pussy Riots Balaclavas Material Culture and Feminist Agency,’ Leeds Art University (2020), 237-247.
Kipp, Caroline. ‘Exhibition Review, Faith Ringgold: American People,’ The Journal of Modern Craft 15, no. 3 (2022), 331-336.
Markussen, Thomas. ‘The Disruptive Aesthetics of Design Activism: Enacting Design Between Art and Politics,’ Design Issues 29, no. 1 (2013), 38-50.
Priest, Myisha. ‘Gospels according to Faith: Rewriting Black Girlhood through the Quilt,’ Children’s Literature Association Quarterly 39, (2014), 461-81.
Ringgold, Faith. We Flew over the Bridge: The Memoirs of Faith Ringgold (Duke University Press, 2005), 143-162, 173-187.
Figure 1, The Flag is Bleeding #2 (America Collection #6) 1997. Faith Ringgold. Copyright Pippy Houldsworth Gallery https://www.houldsworth.co.uk/artists/73-faith-ringgold/works/9678-faith-ringgold-the-flag-is-bleeding-2-american-collection-6-1997
Featured Image Credit: Collection Till Passow Battle for Bagram in 2001 via Wiki Commons.
Retrospect Journal 
