Published: March 25, 2008 08:20 am            

Artist/poet O’Neal to speak March 30 at SCC

Community News

Artist and poet Charlotte Hill O’Neal will be speaking at Somerset Community College Sunday, March 30, beginning at 3 p.m. in Meece Auditorium.

The visit is part of SCC’s celebration of March as Women’s History Month. She will be reading from her new book of poetry, entitled Warrior Women of Peace.

The public is invited and there is no charge for admission.

Known as Mama Charlotte, O’Neal is also a musician, writer, filmmaker, long-time community activist and co-director at United African Alliance Community Center (UAA CC) based in Tanzania, East Africa. She is currently visiting the United States until April 2008. Charlotte Hill O’Neal was born March 9, 1951, in Kansas City, Kan. She has been married to Pete O’Neal, the founder of the United African Alliance Community Center (UAACC) since 1969. They have lived and worked in Africa since 1970.

Tanzania became their home in 1972. The O’Neals live in Imbaseni Village in Tanzania.

The O’Neals have two children: Malcolm, 34, and Ann Wood, 31.

O’Neal is a resident artist and programs director for UAACC.

In addition to being a published poet and writer, O’Neal is a self-taught artist specializing in paper-mache sculpture, acrylic painting, art quilts and multi medium compositions. She has exhibited her work both in Africa and the United States. Her first exhibit was at the Paa ya Paa Gallery and arts center in Nairobi, Kenya, in 1987.

O’Neal is especially noted for her textile and fabric art. Her work “Spelman Women” was unveiled and installed at the Women’s Center at Spelman College in Atlanta in April 2006.

She had a solo exhibit entitled “On being ... and finding voice” at the Augusta Savage Gallery at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst in October and November 2007.

She has also exhibited at Penn State University, North Carolina State University and Dartmouth University.

According to writer Charlotte K. Blessing on the Writer’s Digest Web site:

“An afternoon in the company of Charlotte Hill O’Neal is like getting a booster vaccination. Vibrant and positive, Charlotte’s outlook on life is contagious, as the R&B rhythm that fills her buzzing African compound.”

Blessing quotes O’Neal as saying, “I thrive on being busy. I love working together with the people here.”

According to Blessing, O’Neal was referring to the Swahili-speaking residents of Imbaseni village, where she lives.

According to Blessing, one of O’Neal’s role models is Oprah Winfrey.

Blessing quotes O’Neal as saying:

“Even though I have never met Oprah Winfrey, she has been a role model for me, as she is for probably millions of others, for many years. Her community spirit and sharing astonishes me. Her down to earth personality and lack of putting on airs, is very admirable. I know that we will meet one day, and I look forward to telling her what her example continues to mean to me.”

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.