Augusta Fells Savage (1892 - 1962)

Augusta Fells was born in Green Cove Springs, Florida on February 29, 1892. The child of a Methodist minister, she modeled figures out of clay despite her father's strong disapproval of her work. Her family moved to West Palm Beach, Florida in 1915, and four years later, at the county fair, she won an award for her sculptures. She had been married once when she was younger but her husband died, leaving her to care for her daughter alone. In her early 20s, she met and married James Savage, but divorced him only a few years later. She moved to Jacksonville, Florida to earn a living as a sculptor but was unable to, so in 1921 she moved to New York where she felt she would have a better chance to succeed. She studied sculpture at Cooper Union where her teachers were quick to realize her talent.

In 1923, she was accepted into a summer art program in France, but when the French government discovered she was African-American, they rejected her admission. She did not take the rejection quietly, however, and made sure that the public knew what had happened. That same year, she married again, but her husband died in 1924.

In 1929 she won a scholarship to study in Paris, and finally went to Europe. When she returned home, she was able to teach others in Harlem what she had learned. She believed that African-American artists should have the opportunity to study in Europe and use what they learned to produce art that presented their culture with dignity. She became an important figure in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, a movement that began in New York during which African-American artists of all kinds worked together to explore their cultural identity.

In 1932 she founded the Savage Studio of Arts and Crafts in Harlem where she taught art to adults. Five years later she was appointed as director of the new Harlem Community Arts Center. It was a place where African-Americans could study their own culture through art. Her own work had beautiful curved lines to show graceful motion and energy. Through her art and efforts on behalf of others, she was influential in helping fellow artists start their careers.

In the last 20 years of her life, she did less and less sculpting, and moved to a farm in Saugerties, New York, although she continued teaching until her death in 1962. She was always an outspoken advocate of human rights, including equality in education for her fellow African-Americans, especially for women. She had experienced prejudice and wanted to help others overcome that. "If I can inspire one of these youngsters to develop the talent I know they possess," she said, "then my monument will be in their work." She died on March 27, 1962 in New York City.