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"I am a woman, a mother, a grandmother. The children I have borne and the children I have buried have altered my existence in a way so powerful that I have no alternative but to give in to it. And giving in to it, I have gained in ways that have allowed me to live with a goal, an intent, a dedication and a constant prayer that all I believe is important in the world will continue to exist."  Diosa Summers

In Memory of Our Sister, Diosa Summers (Mississippi Choctaw)

Coast to Coast: A Women of Color National Artists' Project was organized in 1987 as an exhibition called Coast to Coast: A Women of Color National Artists' Book Project. Clarissa Sligh was asked by Faith Ringgold along with Margaret Gallegos to collaborate in the organization of the exhibition for The Women's Caucus for Art National Conference in Houston, Texas. The goal was to establish a venue for the exhibition of the exceptional talent of women artists of color. In addition, the project provided an opportunity for the women to collaborate and develop dialogues.

Two hundred artists from over thirty states were represented in the first exhibition. Hispanic, Native American, Middle Eastern, Far Eastern and African American women celebrated the complex experience of being women of color in America. Using materials such as audiotape, leather, quilts, gourd skin, pulp paper, photographs, boxes and bags, they created individually and collaboratively artists’ books.

Coast to Coast: A Women of Color National Artists' Book Project toured nationally to at least ten institutions. Panel discussions, lectures, and workshops provided an opportunity for artists to exchange ideas cross-culturally and to overcome centuries of ethnic misinformation. Additional projects were to follow.

More information on Coast to Coast: A Women of Color National Artists' Project will be posted at a later date.

Clarissa Sligh, 2006.

Coast to Coast