Nancy Elizabeth Prophet Diary (1922-1934)

Nancy Elizabeth Prophet (1890-1960) was an American sculptress and, in 1918, the first woman of color to graduate from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). Her work became well-known throughout Europe and the United States. Born in Warwick, Rhode Island to a Narragansett Indian father and an African American mother, she experienced and struggled against racial discrimination typical of the times in which she lived. She studied and worked in Paris from 1922-1934. She taught at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia from 1934-1944. This collection contains the diary she kept during her life in Paris. In it she describes the hardships of poverty, her eagerness to work on her sculptures, the generosity of those who assisted her, and the sculptures she created.

Format(s): Manuscripts
Library: John Hay

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Access to the collection:

Online Catalog (BruKnow):
General description of the collection available on BruKnow

Other Online Access:
Exhibit: Hale Woodruff, Nancy Elizabeth Prophet and the Academy
Digital Collection: Diary of Nancy Elizabeth Prophet (full text)