| The American Collection | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:Jo_Baker%27s_Bananas,_1997,_Ringgold_at_NMWA_2023.jpeg) #4: Jo Baker's Bananas (1997) at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in 2023 | |
| Artist | Faith Ringgold |
| Year | 1997 |
| Medium | Acrylic on canvas, quilt art |
| Location | National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C. |
| Preceded by | The French Collection (1991-1997) |
The American Collection is a series of eleven quilt paintings by American artist Faith Ringgold, completed in 1997, with an additional unfinished quilt that the artist sketched but did not complete. The series serves as a continuation of the narrative the artist began in her earlier series of quilt paintings The French Collection (1991-1997). While the quilts in The French Collection included detailed narratives written in text along the edges of each quilt, The American Collection quilts do not include stories in text and are meant to be understood as paintings by Marlena Simone, the daughter of the fictional central character from the earlier series.
The American Collection is a prominent example of Ringgold's artistic engagements and debates with the aesthetics, philosophies, and key figures of modernist art.