Edmonia Lewis, the first Black and Indigenous American sculptor to achieve international acclaim, is finally receiving long-overdue recognition more than a century after her death.
Born in 1844 to a free Black father and an Ojibwe mother, Lewis built a groundbreaking career creating neoclassical sculptures that championed emancipation and Indigenous identity.
After facing racism in the US, she relocated to Rome, where her work gained global attention and attracted prominent visitors, including President Ulysses S. Grant. Despite her success, she died in obscurity in 1907.
Now, a major retrospective is piecing together her legacy, highlighting her artistic brilliance and restoring her place in history as a pioneer whose work continues to resonate.