Meet-a-Ram: IBé Crawley still adding creative chapters to her life story

By Joan Tupponce

IBé Crawley hit the books during her early years as a Virginia Commonwealth University student - lots and lots of books.

"I shelved books … at Cabell Library, which was equivalent to taking a research class," said Crawley, who earned an English degree from the College of Humanities and Sciences in 1981 and a master's in education from the School of Education in 1988. "I was busy browsing."

Crawley, who arrived on campus in 1976, has remained busy in the decades since, marked by a lengthy career in education and an ongoing creative streak - which includes making books.

"It's been great to watch IBé grow in terms of her multidisciplined artistry," said Barbara Payton, a retired VCU faculty member who met Crawley when they were students and have remained friends for 45 years - and are collaborating on a fellowship with Oakwood Arts, a nonprofit that provides accessibility to art for middle school students in Richmond's Church Hill.

VCU News caught up with Crawley to walk through a few chapters of her rich life story.

How did your upbringing in Danville power your journey?

From the civil rights struggle I witnessed in Danville, through all my teaching experiences, I have been a learner. I learned about accountability when seeing the arrest of my grandfather, Ernest Howard Smith, and my cousin, Bishop Campbell, for helping lead Bloody Monday in 1963, when about 250 people confronted the local government about racial inequalities in the city.

And I watched extended family, neighbors and church members create food, child care and senior care programs to support education in Danville. This model of service to community taught me love as action.

You weren't quite 17 when you came to VCU in 1976. What was college like for you?

IBé Crawley completed her first book, titled "11033," in 2021 at the Women's Studio Workshop in Rosendale, N.Y., where she learned to make paper and do etching, all part of a group of art forms called book arts. (Contributed image)

I soaked up whatever the school and city had to offer. I loved Franklin Street's old houses, the Pace Church next door to Rhoads Hall and Sally Bell's Kitchen in the little brick building on Grace Street. I loved Shafer Street Theater and the Chesterfield Tea Room's white tablecloths and homemade rolls.

But what I cherished the most was student life, from attending basketball games to enjoying reggae concerts. As a work-study student, I shelved books and helped out at the checkout desk at Cabell Library, which was equivalent to taking a research class. Sometimes it took longer to complete a reshelving cart, because I was busy browsing the books.

After you graduated in 1981, how did your work for community support groups impact you?

At the Daily Planet, I facilitated small groups to support mental health for homeless and socially needy adults. I had learned social group work skills from VCU professor James Forte, and I expanded my reach to supporting pre-release men and women returning to the community from time in jail. I also worked with SCAN - Stop Child Abuse Now - and a battered women's shelter during my first decade after graduating from VCU.

That time informed my commitment to education. I could see that the next generation needed good teachers, and VCU offered me the opportunity to become one.

So, you returned to VCU and earned your master's in early childhood education.

Being in a classroom has always been my safe space: I like learning, I like teachers, and I like learning with classmates.

I also embraced my love of storytelling, which I trace to my cousin, Bishop Campbell, and how he was a linguistic scholar and a great storyteller. In 1989, I secured a grant from the National Endowment of the Arts and Humanities to facilitate African American History Month storytelling assemblies across the state.

I spent 30 years teaching K-12 in Virginia schools, and in the latter part of my career, I started a program that taught teenage mothers to read to their young children.

Retirement hasn't stopped your creative streak, though - if anything, it seems to have grown.

My arts community is extensive. I'm part of the African American doll and puppet makers community and the African American Craft Alliance, as well as various book arts collectives. In the 2010s, I participated in a bookmaking workshop for teachers at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, and I also took summer classes at the Center for the Book in New York.

I like books, especially when I can include mixed media and found objects in a project. It's a skill I learned from my great-grandmother, Ruth, and I put all of that background to work - researching, writing and making my first book, titled "11033." I made it in 2021 at the Women's Studio Workshop in Rosendale, N.Y., where I learned to make paper and do etching, all part of a group of art forms called book arts.

IBé Crawley said she particularly enjoys making books when she can include mixed media and found objects in a project. (Contributed image)

Tell us about the IBé Arts Institute, which you founded in 2021 as another vehicle for community and creativity.

My retirement plan included mentoring students and teachers, and I collaborate with the National Park Service to deliver history-based stories, including through the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site and the Petersburg National Battlefield sites.

The Institute is located in the oldest pre-Civil War two-room school building in Hopewell, and it was in pretty rough shape. After stabilizing the decaying fireplace, replacing the roof, adding new mechanics, drywall and paint, I've made the institute a true archive for my stone sculpture and print studio.

And the book work continues, right?

Since making "11033" in 2021, I've produced quite a few artist books. Now I'm focused on completing a book titled "Exchange" that includes multiple prints and laser-cutting maps of Richmond's Shockoe Valley. It describes the very different lives of three free women by using their actual wills, deeds and tax records. It's a very interesting project.