Grand Concourse at 149th Street
Eugenio Maria de Hostos: The Man, His Life and His Dream, 1994
quilted acrylic on painted canvas, duck fabric 9' x 18'
Second floor atrium adjacent to bridge section
Dormitory Authority, State of New York
Faith Ringgold's story quilt is mounted inside a Plexiglas box on a wall of the atrium inside the Allied Health Building of Hostos Community College. This work is a celebration of the life of the great revolutionary Puerto Rican educator, Eugenio Maria de Hostos, who lived from 1839 to 1903. Eugenio Maria de Hostos was a teacher, sociologist, political scientist, philosopher and writer. He was dedicated to the spiritual, economic and social uplifting of the people of the Americas. This work centers around three major portraits of Hostos. The first portrays him in his youth as a student of law in Madrid. The second depicts him as a revolutionary thinker and worker for the liberation of Puerto Rico and the unification of Cuba, Santo Domingo and Puerto Rico. The third characterizes him as an international educator, teacher and scholar. His words, which give hope to the struggle for Latin American independence, are also an integral part of the composition.
