Robin Hickman Winfield is a fifth-generation Minnesotan, a filmmaker, and a youth mentor shaped by the Black Arts Movement, faith, and the influence of her granduncle Gordon Parks. Through her work in media, mentorship, and her “Soulful Dolls” project, she’s spent decades pouring into her community—now, she’s stepping back into the spotlight to feed her own creative spirit.
Robin Hickman Winfield describes herself not just as a filmmaker or artist, but as someone molded by community. A fifth-generation Minnesotan with roots in both Minneapolis and St. Paul, she is the grandniece and protégé of legendary photojournalist Gordon Parks. Her life and work honor a lineage of Black excellence while offering young people a vision of possibility through storytelling, mentorship, and doll artistry.
“I am because we were,” she said. “It’s hard for me to talk about myself without talking about the village that raised me.”
Born in St. Paul and raised during her early years in Minneapolis, Hickman Winfield moved permanently to St. Paul at age five. She came of age in the Rondo and Summit-University neighborhoods, which she recalls as “very Afrocentric, very Black excellence oriented.” Her childhood was full of vibrant experiences, from attending J.J. Hill Elementary School with a Black principal and teachers, to visiting cultural centers like Hallie Q. Brown and the Inner City Youth League, co-founded by her father, Bobby Hickman.
“We had everything we needed: media, theater, dance, drum corps. We had options,” she said. “And our community taught us not just to dream, but to do.”
Inspired by the Black Arts Movement, the civil rights era, and her granduncle Gordon Parks, Hickman Winfield fell in love with media at an early age. She was only 16 when she began interviewing major musical acts for a teen TV show on an ABC affiliate. Before graduating high school, she had interviewed George Clinton, Bootsy Collins, and Evelyn “Champagne” King, as well as hosting her own radio program.
That early momentum carried her to Howard University, where she pursued her dream of working in film and television. She credits her success to a combination of vision and community support. “I didn’t come from money,” she said. “But I had people around me who helped me shape my vision and make it real.”
Her media career has included producing a documentary for HBO about her granduncle Gordon Parks and working on the acclaimed HBO miniseries “Laurel Avenue.” But Hickman Winfield’s impact extends far beyond the screen.
Her parallel creative practice is her celebrated work with dolls. What began as a childhood comfort became a form of healing and a tool for transformation. “My mother Patty Hickman made sure we had dolls that looked like us,” she said. “And when the world felt uncertain, I found peace in that.”
Today, her “Soulful Dolls” project involves reimagining and styling dolls that reflect the beauty of Black identity. She’s taken these creations as far as West Africa, where she gifted dolls with natural hair and Afrocentric features to girls in remote villages. “They cried,” she recalled. “They had never seen a doll that looked like them.”
Hickman Winfield sees her art as a form of ministry. “My dolls aren’t toys,” she said. “They’re healing. They’re hope.”
For more than 30 years, she has also mentored youth through media, education, and the arts. In the 1990s, she helped birth “Don’t Believe the Hype,” a groundbreaking youth-produced television program at Twin Cities PBS. The program ran for 10 years and was revived under her leadership just a few years ago, until it was recently cut due to funding reductions.
“That was hard,” she admitted. “But we built something special, and no one can take that from us.”
She currently co-teaches a Gordon Parks Legacy class at Gordon Parks High School and leads a youth program called “Loving the Skin I’m In,” inspired by Sharon Flake’s novel of the same name. The initiative focuses on helping girls of color embrace their identity and self-worth.
Through it all, faith is Hickman Winfield’s foundation. She references scriptures often and finds strength in the idea that her work is part of a divine calling. “I believe God is saying to me now: Well done. Not perfectly done, but well done,” she said through tears.
After decades of pouring into others, Hickman Winfield is now turning inward. She speaks with excitement about making more films, walking red carpets, and returning to creative work that feeds her spirit. But the greatest joy in her life right now is her husband, Steven.
“That’s my blessing,” she said. “My joy, really.”
As she continues to create and uplift, Robin Hickman Winfield remains a living archive of Black history, art and resilience — proof that visionary work rooted in community can ripple through generations.
“I’ve walked the red carpets, and have paused many times to wrap my arms around young people,” she said, referring to the West African term ‘Sankofa.’ “Now it’s my turn to return to the spotlight again. I’m ready to rise.”
For more on Robin Hickman’s Soulful Dolls, visit www.celebrationofsoulfuldolls.com. Despite “Don’t Believe the Hype,”executive produced and co-created by Hickman, being cut due to the current administration, you can still check it out here, www.tpt.org/dont-believe-the-hype.
Jasmine McBride welcomes reader responses at jmcbride@spokesman-recorder.com.