Dindga McCannon - Quilter, Author

Dindga McCannon is BAD. She was born and raised in Harlem. She studied at the Art Students' League and the City University of New York. Her first solo show occurred when she was just 17 years old! She's made jewelry, designed dresses (including her daughter's wedding dress!), taught printmaking, created wearable art coats, painted murals. She co-founded the Black Women's art collective, Where We At (1971 to 1997). Members of the collective included Faith Ringgold, Jerrilyn Crooks, and others. Dindga also illustrated Edgar Nkosi White's children's books, and even wrote and illustrated two books of her own!

Take a moment to get a used copy of PEACHES, Dindga's 1974 young adult novel. Within the 126 pages you'll meet a teenage black girl in Harlem who wants dearly to be an artist. The novel centers on one poignant summer when Peaches, about 14 years old, spends time with her best friend and her cousin getting into trouble, uses her needlearts skills to make abit of change, falls in "love" with Zoom, attends camp, and allows her imagination and sketch pencils to take her away. The novel is fast paced. I laughed aloud at times and was teary at the end (without giving away why). Family and neighbors plays a major part of the story. Heck, it was Grandma who named her Peaches. The novel was written more than 30 years ago, but holds up very well. Dindga's full page and double-page spread illustrations are sprinkled throughout the eight chapters. Highly recommended. I can't wait to start Dindga's other young adult novel about a budding black artist, Wilhemina Jones, Future Star (1980). Go, Dindga!