Edmonia Lewis

About

New York-born artist whose career as a sculptor took her to Rome, Italy. Her famous sculptures include The Death of Cleopatra (more than 3,000 pounds and made of marble) and Forever Free (a celebration of the end of slavery).

Before Fame

After graduating from Oberlin College in Ohio, she moved to Boston, Massachusetts to begin her career as a sculptor.

Trivia

Her Native American ancestry inspired an 1866 sculpture entitled Old Arrow-Maker and His Daughter.

Family Life

She was born in New York City to a family of Haitian, African, African-American, and Mississauga Ojibwe heritage.

Associated With

She created an 1868 sculpture based on the character of Minnehaha in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's The Song of Hiawatha.