Kara Walker (born November 26, 1969, Stockton, California, U.S.) is an American installation artist who uses intricate cut-paper silhouettes, together with collage, drawing, painting, performance, film, video, shadow puppetry, light projection, and animation, to comment on gender relations, power, race, and black history. At the Rhode Island School of Design, Kara Walker began working in the silhouette form. In 1994, her work appeared in a new-talent show at the Drawing Center in New York and she became an instant hit. In 1997, she received a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation "genius grant." In 1997, Walker received a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship “genius grant.” That same year, her work became the subject of debate when African American artist Betye Saar argued that Walker’s work was “revolting and negative” and made “for the amusement and the investment of the white art establishment.” Since then, Walker's work has been exhibited in galleries and museums worldwide. The same year that she graduated from RISD, Walker debuted a mural at the Drawing Center in New York City, entitled "Gone: An Historical Romance of a Civil War as It Occurred Between the Dusky Thighs of One Young Negress and Her Heart." It wasn't just the theme of the piece that caught the attention of critics, but its form: black-paper silhouette figures against a white wall. The mural launched Walker's career, also making her one of the leading artistic voices on the subject of race and racism. So, in addition to being well-received Kara Walker has also received backlash as well. Her response to this is, “I have always responded,” Walker said, “to art which jarred the senses and made one aware physically and emotionally of the shifting terrain on which we rest our beliefs.” PEACE to Kara Walker, Stockton stand up!