Art Fact Friday #1 Varnette Honeywood July 28th 2023

Recently I won a raffle for 4 mini prints by Varnette Honeywood (images below.) “Jesus Loves Me.” Copyright 1988. As seen in the living room of The Cosby Show. “The Caregiver.” Copyright 1996. As seen on Amen. “Green for Money, Peas for Luck.” Copyright 1979. “Rap Street.” Copyright 1979. As seen on The Cosby Show.

This inspired me to revitalize my series on art . So to end July and start a new trend; I will be highlighting Varnette Honeywood and her contributions to art making and exposure.

Varnette was born in Los Angeles California on December 27, 1950. Her parents were elementary school teachers. They relocated from Mississippi and Louisiana. They both experienced difficult lives under Jim Crow laws of the South and abuse from the Ku Klux Klan. At the age of 12, after Varnette tested out of art projects conducted by her parents. Varnette then began studying at the Chouinard Art Institute. She would go on to create art for the next 47 years. Her early pieces draw inspiration from the landscapes of Magnolia, Mississippi. As a young artist she painted the fruit trees of Southern California inside scenes of Mississippi and Louisiana.

Honeywood attended Spelman College, an historically Black women’s college and planned to major in history and pursue a career teaching; while there she was , guided by her instructor Joe Ross to switch her major to art. She began to develop her use of brilliant colors and complex designs. Kofi Bailey, was a major influence at Spelman. His work was infused with social consciousness. Honeywood participated in Civil Rights protests at Spelman and these experiences displayed to her the power of visual art in human rights.

Honeywood graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art from Spelman in 1972. As a graduate student, Honeywood taught art at the Los Angeles Central Juvenile Hall, she received her Master of Science degree in Education, and her teaching credentials from the University of Southern California (USC) in 1974. After graduation, Honeywood began teaching in multicultural arts-and-crafts programs. Her focus would become positive visual images for Black children. She was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts from Spelman College in 2005.

Honeywood's major influences included William H. Johnson, Samella Lewis and Romare Bearden. She also credited Elizabeth Catlett, “particularly her political influence,” and Jacob Lawrence, “for his documentation of a particular aspect of one’s history.” In 1975, Honeywood and her sister Stephanie, entered into the “Black-themed” art-greeting-card business. They founded, Black Lifestyles Fine Art, with a mission to publish and distribute Honeywood’s note-cards, posters, and prints.

During the 1980s, Varnette resigned as Director of Art Outreach Program at USC. Honeywood was discovered by Bill Cosby and his wife Camille through her work on note-cards. In 1974 a reproduction of her painting “Birthday” and other artworks would be featured in every room of The Cosby Show from 1984 until 1992 and viewed more than 35 million people every week.

Honeywood's artwork would go on to be used as backdrops for “Kids Say the Darndest Things.” And seen in television series, including Amen, Golden Girls, A Different World, 227, and Cosby. Varnette’s artwork would appear again in movies: Bustin’ Loose and Beauty Shop.

In 1990, Honeywood was commissioned to create for the National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta entitled “Generations of Creative Genius.” She was chosen to create the BCCC logo. She also created the poster for the CDF’s campaign for preventing teen pregnancy and for their “Beat the Odds” 1990 awards ceremony. In 1993, Honeywood donated the artwork and signature logo for the Black Community Crusade for Children (BCCC). “Adinkra Quilt,” an exhibit of her watercolors and monoprints, was featured at the Los Angeles Museum of African American Art in 1994, and exhibited at Watts Towers. Honeywood, created the art for multiple organizations, including Girls Inc., the National Association for Sickle Cell Disease, and the United States Labor Defense Fund.

Also during the 1990s, she illustrated a series of 12 books by Bill Cosby, the Little Bill books for beginning readers. Honeywood’s was hailed for her use of pigments, energetic style and elevation of stories.” Little Bill was made into an animated television series and was broadcast on Nick Jr., Viacom, CBS networks. Little Bill also awarded the 2001 Peabody Award, a 2004 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Children’s Series, and is of the best-selling series, on Oprah's Book Club list.

Honeywood’s art has appeared in a multitude of trade-book jackets, including all of Tina McElroy’s books as well as textbooks, film, and media. Varnette's artwork features in many collections throughout the U.S. and Africa. In 2002, the USC Black Alumni Association and the USC libraries paid tribute to her life and work with an exhibition honoring Black History Month. “Trojans of Ebony Hue: Varnette P. Honeywood, Portrait of a Cultural Artist” displayed for two-months. The exhibition consisted of her artwork, books, photos, quilting, ceramic works, and memorabilia. Honeywood's illustrated for Mari Evan’s books teenage pregnancy, released in 2005.

On September 12, 2010 Honeywood died at age 59, in Los Angeles. She battled with cancer for two years. Her family subsequently created, the Varnette P. Honeywood Foundation for those who are at risk of having reproductive cancers. The Varnette P. Honeywood Foundation focuses on: Scholarship programs for promising art students and artists in all genres whose work are a positive offering to civilization. The Foundations inspiration comes from the ideals of creating common ground for every person, bettering the caliber of life for every human, and encouraging the shared commitment for creating an enlightened society that future generations will profit from.

Honeywood's artwork can still be seen on numerous show such as Amen, The Steve Harvey Show, My Wife and Kids, Smart Guy, Melrose Place, Golden Girls and various other television shows, movies and book covers. She is recognized by contemporary artists today for her significant contribution, helping to envision and shape Black visual culture.

Source: http://biography.jrank.org/pages/2856/Honeywood-Varnette-P.html

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