GINA WASHINGTON
Sweet Freedom Rising
Sweet Freedom Rising
Gina Washington
the artist's inspiration
I come from a long line of people who, with their hands and hearts, nurtured a family of artists – whose creativity was a form of survival, dreaming beyond their conditions. The truth of the theme ‘Still We Rise’ for me is that I stand on the shoulders of my ancestors.
What you see in Sweet Freedom Rising is a meditation on their journey: reflecting on how far we've come and how much further there is to go. It is a story of people who are clearing paths for those yet to come. Like the phoenix, we rise from the ashes while fires still burn.
It is a journey told across four panels that connect people and places.
The first panel takes us to Hanover County, Virginia, – and the Wickham plantation – in the 1700s, which is as far back as we have been able to establish our history. By 1860, it was one of the largest plantations in Virginia, with more than 200 people enslaved. Confederate General Williams Carter Wickham was the second generation to inhabit the plantation and often hosted Robert E. Lee. The house is shown in front of the map of the land on which it sits.
We trace the beginning of our family as we know it now –- on my mother’s side – to Vivianna Hewlett, who was enslaved on this estate. She is of course not the origin of our family, but she is what we know as the beginning. Not much is known of her, except for her children’s children, her son is shown in the picture. They went by the name of Hewlett, which may have been the overseer's name. The name, once our surname, has now become the middle name of some of the first-born descendants, connecting us to that history.
The second panel then moves us forward to the first steps of freedom, in Richmond, Virginia. My family became homeowners for the first time, though in a context of deep discrimination. That is one of the things you can see in the map in the background, showing the redlining practices of the time that withheld vital financial services from Black communities and placed us on land deemed unfit.
The picture you see is of my great-grandmother – Harriet Hewlett Poteate, who is surrounded by images of her nine children. She was not enslaved, but her people were, - so her life speaks of a great transformation. And I knew my great-grandmother, who lived to be 104 years old. In front of the house in Richmond, Virginia, you see my mom and her cousins.
CAPITOL PARK, detroit
june 2024
From there, the family migrated north in search of a brighter future, eventually settling in Cleveland in the 1950s, as depicted in the third panel. You can see the home where I was raised. East Cleveland at the time was fascinating, as the school system was ahead of its time, and my mom, an educator, was committed to giving us opportunities. The map shows a Cleveland that was deeply unequal, and some would argue that it still is — displayed by the yellow and red spaces on the map. The red spaces were places where you didn't want to live. In Mapping Inequality, the red spaces are called hazardous, with the yellow areas representing something more desirable for African Americans but described as being in decline because African Americans (Negroes) lived in the area. The yellow area is noted as being a space for "Respectable people, but homes are too near negro area."
Core to my memory was my Great Aunt Pearl, you can see laughing in this picture, surrounded by her sisters and images from family reunions. That is what I remember very fondly of this home and this amazingly complicated individual: people coming together in love and family, even with the complexities boisterous families bring with them. Our extended family had two houses just five minutes apart and together we raised each other up.
And that takes us to the fourth panel, with my grandparents dancing. This picture cracks me up: at a party of my grandfather’s people, he – James Williams – is smiling like he’s been mischievous, while she – Mattie Louise Williams – expresses a different emotion! But their hands are intertwined, expressing their life together since he jumped on the back bumper of a car and saw her for the first time, decades before.
They are encircled by pictures of their family, including me and my sister Leza on the right. It’s a lot of life in those pictures, both good and tough. Leza – a doctor by profession and beautiful by character – passed away at the age of 36. Before she did, she gave me the gift of the name Matilda for my daughter, who is also part of the images surrounding my grandparents.
The house on this panel belonged to my grandfather and I now live in it. It has seen the family become doctors, lawyers, artists, and designers. The houses are in C58 and C56 on the map, which shows that over time the family has moved into areas that are better off.
It is a journey through generations of a family existing in love and ambition for one another and its future. It is traced through the four panels by butterflies – the swallowtail butterfly representing Virginia and the monarch butterfly symbolizing the path from Ohio back to the southern states following our Migration and Transformation. Like them, we are always becoming.
With Sweet Freedom Rising, I offer this simple prayer to my ancestors (seen in binary code on the sculpture):
To my ancestors and angels, I pray for your guidance from the wisdom of the ages that humanity finds its way through the madness of scarcity. I am because of you; I am grateful to you. I will do my best to remember before the book and before hate ruled each land, creating walls. I am love, rising.
Gina’s “If I Could Tell You Just One Thing…”
Let compassion rule your decisions. That’s it. Often, we rush into a response. And we can forget that everybody is going through their own struggles. If we take a breath and begin from a place of compassion, we create space for each other.
THEME
STILL WE RISE
Still We Rise celebrates and tells the story of people who have transformed the universe of the possible through their impact across our society, from the everyday spaces of our lives to the global stage.
THEME
STILL WE RISE
Still We Rise celebrates and tells the story of people who have transformed the universe of the possible through their impact across our society, from the everyday spaces of our lives to the global stage.
the artist's inspiration
I come from a long line of people who, with their hands and hearts, nurtured a family of artists – whose creativity was a form of survival, dreaming beyond their conditions. The truth of the theme ‘Still We Rise’ for me is that I stand on the shoulders of my ancestors.
What you see in Sweet Freedom Rising is a meditation on their journey: reflecting on how far we've come and how much further there is to go. It is a story of people who are clearing paths for those yet to come. Like the phoenix, we rise from the ashes while fires still burn.
It is a journey told across four panels that connect people and places.
The first panel takes us to Hanover County, Virginia, – and the Wickham plantation – in the 1700s, which is as far back as we have been able to establish our history. By 1860, it was one of the largest plantations in Virginia, with, more than 200 people enslaved. Confederate General Williams Carter Wickham was the second generation to inhabit the plantation and often hosted Robert E. Lee. The house is shown in front of the map of the land on which it sits.
We trace the beginning of our family as we know it now –- on my mother’s side – to Vivianna Hewlett, who was enslaved on this estate. She is of course not the origin of our family, but she is what we know as the beginning. Not much is known of her, except for her children’s children, her son is shown in the picture. They went by the name of Hewlett, which may have been the overseer's name. The name, once our surname, has now become the middle name of some of the first-born descendants, connecting us to that history.
The second panel then moves us forward to the first steps of freedom, in Richmond, Virginia. My family became homeowners for the first time, though in a context of deep discrimination. That is one of the things you can see in the map in the background, showing the redlining practices of the time that withheld vital financial services from Black communities and placed us on land deemed unfit.
The picture you see is of my great-grandmother – Harriet Hewlett Poteate, who is surrounded by images of her nine children. She was not enslaved, but her people were, - so her life speaks of a great transformation. And I knew my great-grandmother, who lived to be 104 years old. In front of the house in Richmond, Virginia, you see my mom and her cousins.
GINA WASHINGTON
Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Gina Washington holds an MFA in Photography from Ohio University. A self-described “Child of the Universe” and multidisciplinary artist, she makes art by any means necessary. Her work spans ceramics, photography, mixed media, and installation. She founded the online Mateza Gallery LLC and co-founded The Visit Arts Collective, creating experiential exhibitions. Gina has exhibited nationally and internationally, earned the Individual Excellence Award through the Ohio Arts Council, and serves on Mayor Bibb’s Transformative Arts team. As a teaching artist in the non-profit sector, she inspires all ages. Gina seeks to bring clarity in chaos and uplift historically marginalized voices.
Let's make our shared ideals a reality. For everyone.
From there, the family migrated north in search of a brighter future, eventually settling in Cleveland in the 1950s, as depicted in the third panel. You can see the home where I was raised. East Cleveland at the time was fascinating, as the school system was ahead of its time, and my mom, an educator, was committed to giving us opportunities. The map shows a Cleveland that was deeply unequal, and some would argue that it still is — displayed by the yellow and red spaces on the map. The red spaces were places where you didn't want to live. In Mapping Inequality, the red spaces are called hazardous, with the yellow areas representing something more desirable for African Americans but described as being in decline because African American (Negroes) lived in the area. The yellow area is noted as being a space for "Respectable people, but homes are too near negro area."
Core to my memory was my Great Aunt Pearl, you can see laughing in this picture, surrounded by her sisters and images from family reunions. That is what I remember very fondly of this home and this amazingly complicated individual: people coming together in love and family, even with the complexities boisterous families bring with them. Our extended family had two houses just five minutes apart and together we raised each other up.
And that takes us to the fourth panel, with my grandparents dancing. This picture cracks me up: at a party of my grandfather’s people, he – James Williams – is smiling like he’s been mischievous, while she – Mattie Louise Williams – expresses a different emotion! But their hands are intertwined, expressing their life together since he jumped on the back bumper of a car and saw her for the first time, decades before.
They are encircled by pictures of their family, including me and my sister Leza on the right. It’s a lot of life in those pictures, both good and tough. Leza – a doctor by profession and beautiful by character – passed away at the age of 36. Before she did, she gave me the gift of the name Matilda for my daughter, who is also part of the images surrounding my grandparents.
The house on this panel belonged to my grandfather and I now live in it. It has seen the family become doctors, lawyers, artists, and designers. The houses are in C58 and C56 on the map, which shows that over time the family has moved into areas that are better off.
It is a journey through generations of a family existing in love and ambition for one another and its future. It is traced through the four panels by butterflies – the swallowtail butterfly representing Virginia and the monarch butterfly symbolizing the path from Ohio back to the southern states following our Migration and Transformation. Like them, we are always becoming.
With Sweet Freedom Rising, I offer this simple prayer to my ancestors (seen in binary code on the sculpture):
To my ancestors and angels, I pray for your guidance from the wisdom of the ages that humanity finds its way through the madness of scarcity. I am because of you; I am grateful to you. I will do my best to remember before the book and before hate ruled each land, creating walls. I am love, rising.
GINA’s “If I Could Tell You Just One Thing…”
Let compassion rule your decisions. That’s it. Often, we rush into a response. And we can forget that everybody is going through their own struggles. If we take a breath and begin from a place of compassion, we create space for each other.
explore the theme
STILL WE RISE
Let's make our shared ideals a reality. For everyone.
GINA WASHINGTON
Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Gina holds an MFA in Photography from Ohio University. A self-described “Child of the Universe” and multidisciplinary artist, she makes art by any means necessary. Her work spans ceramics, photography, mixed media, and installation. She founded the online Mateza Gallery LLC and co-founded The Visit Arts Collective, creating experiential exhibitions. Gina has exhibited nationally and internationally, earned the Individual Excellence Award through the Ohio Arts Council, and serves on Mayor Bibb’s Transformative Arts team. As a teaching artist in the non-profit sector, she inspires all ages. Gina seeks to bring clarity in chaos and uplift historically marginalized voices.
explore the theme
For everyone. For you. By all of us. Join us.
For everyone. For you.
By all of us. Join us.
PURPOSE
in our relationship with ourselves.
WORTHINESS
I am worthy of love dignity and respect.
AWARENESS
I know how I see the world and where it comes from.
BELIEF
I believe I have something valuable to offer.
PURPOSE
I know what inspires me and what I want to do.