Photo: Barbara Chase, 1966; Geoffrey Clements, photographer; from the American Federation of Arts records, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution
Sculptor, painter, novelist, and poet, Barbara Chase-Riboud (b. 1939 in Philadelphia) uses both visual and literary art, to present African-American history and culture. Chase-Riboud has had a distinguished career and was the first living American woman to have her own exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Her award-winning 1979 book, Sally Hemings: a Novel, provided a historical and literary perspective on Thomas Jefferson’s relationship with his slave, Sally Hemings. The book generated considerable controversy and sold more than one million copies in hardcover.
After earning a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts from Yale University in 1960, Chase-Riboud moved to Paris. She divides her time between France, Rome and New York.
In 1996, Chase-Riboud was awarded a Knighthood in Arts and Letters from the French government. In 2013, Chase will be the subject of a major exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 2013.
