The Flag is Bleeding #2 by Faith Ringgold

Before this assignment, I never really had a favorite painting or photograph. I either like it or I did not like it. In honor of Black History Month, I started looking for African American artists, and I happened to stumble across Faith Ringgold. Many of her artworks are in the form of quilts, and many of them depict Black life in America from the past until the present. Out of the quilts I looked at, the two of the most interesting ones were The Flag is Bleeding #2 and We Came to America. Both seemed to depict the African American struggle in America, but The Flag is Bleeding #2 showed the struggle in a more implicit manner. Both quilts are graphic in a sense, but the graphicness of The Flag is Bleeding #2 seems more symbolic to me. In this quilt, a woman's face is hidden behind the stars of the flag. She and the flag are both bleeding as she clutches two small children. I believe that this quilt represents Black women's struggles and their efforts that they put into building America without receiving much recognition. The woman is hidden behind the stars to signify that even though the United States is "united," the people of this country, including African Americans, are not equal nor "united". The woman is smiling because no matter what life throws at her, she needs to continue to live her life and be optimistic in order to support her family. Her blood and the blood coming from the flag represent the hardships of building this country. The fact that the woman is black rather than white somewhat signifies who did most of the labor. In this case, the woman is most likely a slave. The blood from the woman seems to touch the scared children who hold on to her waist. The blood flowing from the woman to the children represents the present day struggle of African Americans. Even though slavery is over, the struggle for equality and true freedom is not. The woman is the children's backbone, and without her, they have nothing. I like this quilt because it depicts what and who helped build America and what they had to sacrifice. America was built on the exploitation of those less fortunate and the quilt represents this idea very well. This quilt definitely should evoke some type of emotion from all its viewers, especially if the message behind it is well understood. Although The Flag is Bleeding #2 is not the happiest peace of art, it is the truth, and that is why it has now become one of my "like its".