Clay As A Tool To Tell Some Of The Some Of The Story Of African Americans In The Midwest | Gabrielle Ione Hickmon

Gabrielle Ione Hickmon | Episode 1033

Gabrielle Ione Hickmon is an artist and incoming History PhD student at the University of Michigan of, in, and focused on the African American Midwest. Gabrielle also hosts WORKING PROCESS, conversations with Black women ceramic artists about their work and process.

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How does ceramic craft interact with black history in the Midwest?

Oh wow. So part of this I think I will end up studying and exploring more in my PhD program, so this answer is purely based on a few things that I have seen but not any definitive knowing that I have. But we talked about the face jug tradition earlier and there is evidence that those were made in the Midwest as well. And then obviously you think about the intersection between Black communities, African American communities, and Indigenous or Native American communities and there’s a pottery tradition everywhere but especially in Indigenous and Native American communities, and again I don’t know this, but I would be curious to see if there is any connection between the two of those, specifically between tribes and communities in this part of the country.

Can ceramics tell a significant story?

Absolutely. I think it is all about the level of intention that someone comes to their practice with. And what are you grounding the work in and what do you want the work to do in the world once you are finished making it. I think that is how you determine what your ceramics are doing, the story that they are telling and what they are hopefully creating in the world.

Is it important to really know our roots?

I think so. And I think no matter who you are it’s important. There is a concept in the African diaspora, of You can’t know where you are going until you know where you have been. And so for me being able to…I wouldn’t have arrived at what I want to study in my PhD if I didn’t know my roots and my history. All of those questions and this whole project emanates from that. So a shout out to my cousins who have done the genealogical research and put a lot of this together for us. But also in creating a better world for us to live in, everyone has to be willing to do their part to interrogate how they are existing and what they are contributing to the world today.

What happens if we forget out roots?

History repeats itself. And I don’t know, is that what we want? Maybe some people do, but I think in a lot of cases I would say no. We don’t. We want to be creating a world that is free and just and safe for everybody.

What is your favorite piece to make? Do you like to make something that is functional or statement oriented? Tell me your favorite piece.

I think everything is functional. They just have different functions. Right? Some things are functional that you can put water in them and you can eat on them and some things are functional in that they can add beauty to your home, and beauty is a necessity of the human experience. So I like to make functional objects that are beautiful and have a history and tell a story that you cannot necessarily use in the traditional ways that we think about using functional or ceramic objects.