Folk Art (Summer 2005)

INE OF THE AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM * SUMMER 2005 * $8.00

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African-American Concentric Squares Quilt 1940s, cotton, 67 x 75 inches

riccolmaresca GALLERY 529 west 20th street 3rd floor new york ny 10011 212.627.4819

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Patrick Bell / Edwin Hild

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E HOPE ANTIQUES, INC_

RD. Box 718, New Hope, PA 18938-0718

By Appointment 215-297-0200 fax: 215-297-0300 e-mail: info@oldehope.com www.oldehope.com

the finest American country antiques and folk art

An extraordinary Pennsylvania decorated Dutch cupboard.

Berks County, 1830-40 Pine and poplar with the original polychromed finish.

Ht 85.75", Overall Width 64.5"

HILL GALLERY

African American Quilt

407 W. Brown St Birmingham, MI (248) 540-9288

72"x 74"

Circa 1940

Missouri Origin

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Color pencil drawing by FERDINAND BRADER / c. 1890 / Stark Co., Ohio

DAVID WI-HATCROFT Antiques 26 West Main Street • Westborough, MA 01581 • Tel:(508) 366-1723 davidwheatcroft.com

Trotta-Bono Antique Native American Art Art of the Frontier and Colonial Periods

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Effigy Cane Dense blackened hardwood.

Iron and brass ferule.

American, late 18th century/early 19th century. Attributed to the Great Lakes/ Eastern Woodland's native carving tradition. This depiction of an aged George Washington appeared on the 1790 George Manley Trade Medal.

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By Appointment: (914) 528-6604 • P.O. Box 34. Shrub Oak, NY 10588 • Email: tb788183@aol.com We are actively purchasing fine individual pieces and collections.

We specialize in collectioni fdrmation and development.

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Antiques, L.L.C.

at Oley Forge George R. Allen â&#x20AC;˘ Gordon L. W,9c1<0ff Phone:(8%)22+-1282

Mid 1911-1C New Jerse9 wooden carved "Lac:1,9 LilDert9" po1,9chromecl weathervane, originalls9 she held a fabric American flag... and she topped a garden gazebo in freehold, New Jerse9.

raccooncreek@msn.com Welpsite: www.raccooncreekantiques.com

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FOLK ART VOLUME 30, NUMBER 2 / SUMMER 2005

FEATUR

ES

Self and Subject

29

Lee Kogan

Ancestry and Innovation: African American Art from the Collection

36

Stacy C. Hollander and Brooke Davis Anderson

The Shipcarvers' Art: Figureheads in NineteenthCentury New York and Boston

44

Ralph Sessions

Carved by Asa Ames: A Chance Discovery Brings New Facts to Light

52

Laura Lee

Frank Johnson: Comic Book Artist

57

Dan Nadel

DEPARTMENTS

Editor's Column Acting Director's Letter

Cover: THE ARTIST AND HIS MODEL (detail) Morris Hirshfield 1945 American Folk Art Museum (see page 31)

8 13

Books ofInterest

74

Museum News

76

Miniatures

18

Obituaries

89

Conversation

24

Public Programs

90

The Collection: A Closer Look

28

Museum Information: Hours & Admissions,

Update:The Henry Darger Study Center

66

Museum Reproductions Program

68

Trustees/Donors

92

Update:The Shirley K. Schlafer Library

70

Index to Advertisers

96

Quilt Connection

72

Exhibition Schedule

91

1:=1 Folk Art is published four times a year by the American Folk Art Museum.The museum's administrative office mailing address is 49 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10022-5905,Tel. 212/977-7170,Fax 212/977-8134. Prior to Fall 1992, Volume 17, Number 3,Folk Art was published as The Clarion. Annual subscription rate for members is included in membership dues. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;J Copies are mailed to all members. Single copy $8.00. Published and copyright 2005 by the American Folk Art Museum,45 West 53rd Street, New York, NY 10019.The cover and 0 contents of Folk Art are fully protected by copyright and may not be reproduced in any manner without written consent. Opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those ofthe MEM American Folk Art Museum. Unsolicited manuscripts or photographs should be accompanied by retum postage. Folk Art assumes no responsibility for the loss or damage ofsuch materials.

Change ofaddress: Please send both old and new addresses to the museum's membership department at 49 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10022-5905, and allow five weeks for change.

Advertising: Folk Art endeavors to accept advertisements only from advertisers whose reputation is recognized in the trade, but despite the care with which the advertising department screens photographs and texts submitted by its advertisers,it cannot guarantee the unquestionable authenticity ofobjects or quality ofservices advertised in its pages or offered for sale by its advertisers, nor can it accept responsibility for misunderstandings that may arise from the purchase or sale ofobjects or services advertised in its pages.The museum is dedicated to the exhibition and interpretation offolk art and it is a violation ofits principles to be involved in or to appear to be involved in the sale ofworks of art. For this reason,the museum will not knowingly accept advertisements for Folk Art that illustrate or describe objects that have been exhibited at the museum within one year ofplacing an advertisement.The publisher reserves the right to exclude any advertisement.

SUMMER 2005 FOLK ART 7

EDITOR'S

AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM

COLUMN

TANYA HEINRICH

he comic, as a genre, with its narrative construct of sequential panels and dialogue balloons, has long occupied the interstices between high art and low art. Within the last few decades, however, comic book artists have pushed conventional parameters and, working independently or with small alternative presses, have spawned an invigorating new generation of drawing,some of the best of which is routinely exhibited in contemporary art shows and biennial surveys. Our own Vanessa Davis, assistant editor, is herself a rising talent on the scene, and the first volume of her wonderfully drawn autobiographical comic book Spaniel Rage was recently published (Oakland, Calif.: Buenaventura Press,2005).

To bring comic books into our fold, writer..... designer-publisher Dan Nadel introduces the work of Frank Johnson,who filled dozens ofjournals with cartoon strips over a span of nearly 50 years. Never published,Johnson's work mimics comic-strip conventions ofthe 1920s, and he undertook his cartooning with great seriousness, . prolificacy and secrecy He was also a musician and an ardent record collector, and some of his most personal drawings reflect these passions.

Former American Folk Art Museum curator Ralph Sessions has contributed an essay on the 2 shipcarvers'art—specifically the exquisite and stately figurehead carvings that graced the prow of a ship.The center ofthis trade was once in UNTITLED Philadelphia but became concentrated in Boston Frank Johnson (1912-1979) and New York City until the mid-1850s,when Chicago wooden clipper ships were eclipsed by faster 1946 metal-hulled vessels and steamships.

Ink and pencil on paper It has been surmised that 19th-century artist 8 5" Private collection Asa Ames was trained as a shipcarver. His mastery of his medium is evident in each of his 12 attributed carved and painted portrait busts and figures; now a 13th has come to light. Laura Lee,ofthe Boulder History Museum in Colorado, made the exciting discovery ofthe artist's carving ofa young girl. During the course ofresearching the identity ofthe figure,Lee turned up much previously unknown biographical information as well, making definitive connections between the artist and his sitters.

The important relationship between artist and sitter is explored in one oftwo new exhibitions at the museum."Selfand Subject," organized by curator Lee Kogan,explores the many nuances of portraiture as expressed in the 20th century, and some revelatory issues ofidentity emerge through an artist's process oftaking a likeness. For"Ancestry and Innovation: African American Art from the Collection," curators Stacy C.Hollander and Brooke Davis Anderson have juxtaposed quilts— many in the strip tradition,some from Gee's Bend,Ala.—with vibrant and complex drawings, paintings, and sculptures, and the gallery walls pulsate with energy We also present two lively dialogues with filmmakers in this issue; please see "Conversation"for my interview with Roger Manley, and for Brooke Davis Anderson's conversation with Jessica Yu,turn to the report from the Henry Darger Study Center.

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PUBLICATIONS/FOLK ART Tanya Heinrich Director ofPublications/Editor and Publisher Erildca V. Haa Copy Editor Vanessa Davis Assistant Editor Lori T. Leonard Production Editor Eleanor Garlow Advertising Sales Jeffrey Kibler, The Magazine Group,Inc. Design Cenveo Printers ADMINISTRATION Maria Ann Conelli Linda Dunne Gerard C. Wertkin Susan Conlon Robin A. Schlinger Madhulcar Balsara Angela Lam Irene Kreny Robert J. Saracena Anthony Crawford Alexis Davis Richard Ho Daniel Rodriguez Beverly McCarthy Katya Ullman

Director Acting Director/ChiefAdministrative Officer Director Emeritus Assistant to the Director ChiefFinancial Officer Assistant Controller Accountant Accounts Payabk Associate Director ofFacilities Manager of Visitor Services Assistant Manager of Visitor Services Manager ofInformation Technology Office Services Coordinator Mail Order/Reception Administrative Assistant/Reception

COLLECTIONS & EXHIBITIONS Stacy C. Hollander Senior Curator/Director ofExhibitions Brooke Davis Anderson Director and Curator of The Contemporary Center and the Henry Darger Study Center Ann-Marie Reilly ChiefRegistrar/Director ofExhibition Production Elizabeth V. Warren Consulting Curator EDUCATION Diana Schlesinger Lee Kogan

Director ofEducation Director ofthe Folk Art Institute/Curator ofSpecial Projects for The Contemporary Center Janet Lo Manager ofSchooland Docent Programs Madeleine Gill Family Programs Coordinator

DEPARTMENTS Cathy Michelsen Director ofDevelopment Christine Corcoran Manager ofIndividual Giving Pamela Gabourie Manager ofInstitutional Giving Katie Hush SpecialEvents Manager Dana Clair Membership Coordinator Lara Allen Development Coordinator Matthew Beaugrand Membership and SpecialEvents Assistant Danelsi De La Cruz Membership Assistant Wendy Barreto Membership Clerk Susan Flamm Public Relations Director Alice J. Hoffman Director ofLicensing Marie S. DiManno Director ofMuseum Shops Sandy B.Yun Assistant to the Director ofMuseum Shops Janey Fire Director ofPhotographic Services James Mitchell Librarian Jane Lanes Director of Volunteer Services Caroline Kerrigan Executive Director of The American Antiques Show EVA AND MORRIS FELD GALLERY STAFF Weekend Gallery Manager:Ursula Morino; Security: Kenneth R. Bing and Bienvenido Medina MUSEUM SHOPS STAFF Managers:Dorothy Gargiulo,Jessica Lord, Louise B. Sheets, Marion Whitley; Book Buyer: Evelyn R. Gumey; Staff Matthew Beaugrand, Eugenie Boland, Erin Caprara American Folk Art Museum Book and Gift Shops 45 West 53rd Street New York, NY 10019 212/265-1040,ext. 124 Two Lincoln Square (Columbus Avenue between 65th and 66th Streets) New York, NY 10023 212/595-9533,ext. 26 MAILING ADDRESS American Folk Art Museum Administrative Offices 49 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10022-5905 212/977-7170, Fax 212/977-8134,info@follcartmuseum.org, vvww.folkartmuseurn.org

8 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

ALLAN KATZ Americana

Rare Squirrel Weathervane Attributed to Cushing and White, Waltham, Massachusetts. Ca 1875.

Copper with verdigris and traces of gold leaf. Height 18"

Allan & Penny Katz By Appointment 25 Old Still Road, Woodbridge, CT 06525 Tel.(203)393-9356 folkkatz@optonline.net

American Folk Art Sidney Gecker

LABAN BEECHER,EARLY BOSTON SHIP CARVER FINE EAGLE CARVING RETAINING THE ORIGINAL GILT SURFACE•HEIGHT:47 INCHES•WIDTH:38 INCHES•DEPTH:38 INCHES BEECHER IS BEST KNOWN AS THE CARVER OF THE ANDREW JACKSON FIGUREHEAD FOR THE FRIGATE CONSTITUTION AND AS THE MASTER CARVER UNDER WHOM JOHN BELLAMY APPRENTICED.

226 West 21st Street New York, N.Y. 10011 •(212)929-8769•Appointment Suggested Subject to prior sale.

FLE I SHER OLLMAN GALLERY 1616 Walnut Street suite 100 Philadelphia, PA 19103 (215) 545-7562, fax 545-6140 fleisher-ollmangallery.com

SNAPSHOTS Major discovery Felipe Jesus Consalvos' largest work, the 1920-1950 Habana Bureau, in the Philadelphia office, February 2005.

Undated Dress Construction

by James Castle in front of Christina Ramberg's Bridged, 1975. Installation view from Fabulous Histories: Indigenous Anomalies in American Art, curated by Fleisher/011man for the Carpenter Center for Visual Art at Harvard University, October 2004.

Please visit booth 2.0/H5 at Art 36 Basel, June 15-20, where these artists find their place in the gallery's bold program of 20th-Century American self-taught art and its contemporary descendents

giampietro

2005 Catalogue Available for Twenty-Five Dollars

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LINDA DUNNE

ith the spring issue,I had the pleasure of announcing the appointment ofMaria Ann Conelli as the new director of the American Folk Art Museum.While we eagerly await her arrival, on June 1,the museum continues to be extremely busy, presenting exciting exhibitions,educational programs, and fund-raising events.

New to the museum galleries are two exciting shows organized by our staff curators. In February Stacy C. Hollander and Brooke Davis Anderson mounted "Ancestry and Innovation: African American Art from the Collection," on the second floor.The exhibition presents an interesting dialogue between bold, graphic quilts and a selection of vibrant paintings and sculptures, and will remain on view through September 4."Selfand Subject," organized by Lee Kogan,opened on the third floor in March.The exhibition explores issues ofidentity and self-awareness as expressed in portraits by contemporary self-taught artists and will be on view through September 11. If you haven't yet had the opportunity,I encourage you to take in these fine exhibitions during your next visit to the museum—for a sneak peek,turn to pages 29 and 36.

Our fall lineup promises to be equally engaging."Obsessive Drawing," organized

by Brooke Davis Anderson,is an exploration ofthe medium of drawing through the lines and markings made by four emerging contemporary self-taught artists: Charles Benefiel, Hiroyuki Doi, Chris Hipkiss, and Martin Thompson.And Stacy C.Hollander will examine the stylistic evolution ofpaint and pattern, with "Surface Attraction: Painted Furniture from the Collection."

Both shows open in September.

In late January,the museum presented its g Edie and Barry Briskin fourth annual American Antiques Show (TAAS)at the soaring Time Warner Center, in New York City Against a backdrop that afforded sweeping views of a snowy Central Park,the show included stellar examples of American folk art,furniture, paintings, American Indian arts, and photography from forty-seven expert dealers.The gala benefit preview was attended by more than a thousand people and was a huge success for the museum. Don't miss the fun next year! Be sure to mark your calendar—The American Antiques Show 2006 will be held January 18-22, at its original venue,the Metropolitan Pavilion. On behalfofthe museum I'd like to single out the efforts ofTrustee Barry D.Brislcin and his wife, Edie. Barry has been instrumental in the production of TAAS since the beginning,and his guidance and expertise are invaluable to this institution.

Just one week after presenting TAAS,the museum spearheaded Outsider Art Week to coincide with the annual Outsider Art Fair. In addition to presenting an exhibition booth at the fair for the first time,

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the museum organized three educational programs in the EsmerianKing Family Auditorium to standing-room-only crowds: a panel on artists with autism or Asperger's Syndrome,the thirteenth annual Uncommon Artists symposium, and a provocative panel discussion exploring photography in this field.The events brought many new visitors to the museum. For full reports on the American Antiques Show and Outsider Art Week,please turn to pages 76 and 79.

The museum was also teeming with crowds in early February for the wildly successful Blue's Clues Family Day,organized by the education department. Approximately 1,200 adults and children—with nearly as many strollers—attended the daylong event, a testimony to the huge popularity of Nickelodeon TV's program featuring "Blue," a blue dog. With the museum's recent exhibition "Blue" as a backdrop, families took pleasure in searching for "blue" clues in the objects on view, creating blue collages, and meeting the star ofBlue's Clues,"Joe." The museum's wide array offamily programs is a wonderful way to introduce American folk art to our younger audiences.This summer,in addition to family programs designed as companions to "Selfand Subject" and "Ancestry and Artistry," the museum will present Finding Folk Art:Integrating Folk Art into the Classroom.This five-day course in July for elementary school teachers will include seminars led by museum educators, curators, and registrars. Guest speakers will facilitate activities and conversations about the museum's collection as well as approaches to bringing traditional folk art and contemporary works by self-taught artists into the classroom. Educators will deepen their understanding offolk art,learn object-based teaching strategies, have access to museum resources and curriculums,and take field trips to related galleries and behind-the-scenes museum facilities. For more information on this resourceful program,please call Janet Lo, manager ofschool and docent programs, at 212/265-1040,ext. 119.

This year's Spring Benefit will take place on June 8 and will honor Barbara and John Wilkerson. As president ofthe Board ofTrustees from 1999 to 2004,John Wilkerson led the museum through a stage of vital growth that culminated in the completion ofour celebrated new building.The evening's theme,"Get Follcist," is inspired by the portraits on view in "Self and Subject."The lighthearted evening will begin with cocktails in the museum's Cullman/Danziger Family Atrium and then dinner and celebrations will follow in a spectacular tent adjacent to the museum. Capping offthe evening will be a silent auction of mirrors embellished by contemporary self-taught artists.

I encourage you to participate in the museum's exciting programs and special events and invite you to visit the museum soon. I wish you a happy and restful summer.*

SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

13

STANLEY GREER Stone Carvings

LINDSAY GALLERY 986 North High St. Columbus.OH 43201 614-291-1973

www.lindsaygallery.com

arved Eagle A fine carved gilded pine American pilot house eagle with open carved talons, standing on carved base with fully carved body and spread-eagled wings.

Southern New Jersey. Circa 1840.

Dimensions: wing span 42", height to head 16", wing height 21", depth 22".

Thurston Nichols American Antiques LLC 522 Twin Ponds Road, Breinigsville, PA 18031 p: 610.395.5154 f: 610.395.3679 www.antigues101.com

House Portrait Wonderful watercolor portrait of a home in Liberty, PA (Tioga Cty.), "sketched from memory" and dated 1884 by Charles Frederick Veil of his former house. Veil was a well-known prominent citizen of Liberty. 20 1/4 x 24 1/2" (not including period frame.) No other pictures are known by Veil.

Samuel Herrin) Antiques P.O. Box 248, Rt. 7, Sheffield, MA 01257 (413) 229-0424 E-mail: herrup@verizon.net

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Early handmade Americana including carved A.G. Rizzok SIC, Alfred Capobianco and Family Symbolically Sketched / Palazzo del Capobionco. 1937. ink on rag paper; 29-1/16" x 38-5/16"

A.G. Rizzoli 16 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

canes, tramp art, tintypes, quilts and whimseys.

2661 Cedar Street, Berkeley, California 94708 phone 510/845-4949•www.amesgallery.com

Urban Country 218 Main St. Venice, CA 90291 www.urbancountryantiques.com 310. 315. 1927

Specializing in: -Folk Art -Industrial -Americana -Textiles African American Quilt, made of circus flags, Southern Alabama, Circa 1940.

*** ** * * * * * ** ****

Geometric African American Quilt, made of blue work clothes, Circa 1860.

Improvisational African American 48 star Flag Quilt, found in the attic of an African American faith healer in Pittsburgh, PA Circa 1940.

MINIATURES

BY VANESSA DAVIS

S COFFEE HOUSE JUNCTION / Mark Anthony Mulligan / Louisville, Kentucky /2000 / marker and pen on paper / collection of Albertus Gorman

DO WHAT YOU MUST In Kentucky, where the work of self-taught artists is frequently seen as a rural phenomenon, Louisville artist Mark Anthony Mulligan's creations stand in stark contrast. More than 40 of his paintings and drawings,ofurban landscapes dominated by corporate logos, highway signage, and maps ofimagined cities, are the subject of"You Must Withstand the Wind:Transformation ofthe Urban Landscape by Mark Anthony Mulligan," on view at the Kentucky Folk Art Center (606/783-2204; www.kyfolkart.org), in Morehead,until Aug.28.

IN SEARCH OF ORIGINS Historic Deerfield (413/774-5581; www.historicdeerfield.org), in Deerfield, Mass.,is hosting "In Search of Origins: Needlework and Samplers from the Old and New World, 1500-1850," Sept. 8-11.The second in a series ofinternational symposia, the program will explore early sources of and influences on American textiles. Suzanne Flynt, curator of collections at the Pocumtuck Valley Historical Association,leads offthe event with a special lecture on the Deerfield Society of Blue and White Needlework, and more than 15 speakers from Europe and the United States will follow with lectures and presentations. Several workshops covering needlework history, conservation, and creation will be held as well. Registration is required;for more information, please contact Dorrit Turner at 413/775-7201 or dturner@historic-deerfield.org.

AUTOMATISM IN PARIS ABCD la galerie(06 67 64 54 20; www.abcd-artbrut.org),the new headquarters ofthe ABCD foundation in Paris,is presenting its inaugural exhibition,"The Song of Sirens: Automatism in Art Brut," on view until Aug. 11.The ABCD Collection, established in the 1980s,gave rise to a research group,born five years ago, that has produced publications, exhibitions, and films devoted to art brut worldwide. Art brut, according to ABCD,is art that is created under the

UNTITLED /F.Sediak / Czech Republic / c.1924-1925/ colored pencil on paper / ABCD Collection, Faris

control of the unconscious in its many forms.The 130 works in "The Song of Sirens" are selections from among the "classics" of art brut,including the work of Aldise Corbaz, Edmund Monsiel, Martin Ramirez, Bill Traylor, AdolfWolfli, and others, as well as that of newly discovered artists.

UNTITLED! Martin Ramirez / Auburn, California! c.1950 / colored pencil on paper / ABCD Collection, Paris

18 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

UNTITLED (Couple in Trailer Home with Piano, Sarasota, Florida)/ Joseph Janney Steinmetz / United States / 1954, printed later / gelatin silver print / approx. 9 12" / Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University Art Museums, on deposit from the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, 4.2002.8,0 President and Fellows of Harvard College

THREE PHOTOGRAPHY SHOWS Harvard University's Fogg Art Museum (617/495-9400; www.artmuseums.harvard.edu),in Cambridge, Mass.,examines a notable resource of social documentary and vernacular photography in "A New Kind of Historic Evidence: Collecting Photography at the Carpenter Center for Visual Arts," Aug. 8â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Oct.30.The exhibition considers this collection of more than 28,000 prints, negatives, and related material through shifting ideas as to what constitutes the evidentiary nature of photography.

The International Center for Photography (212/857-0000; www.icp.org),in New York City, presents "Young America:The Daguerreotypes of Southworth and Hawes,"June 17â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Sept.4. Albert Sands Southworth and Josiah Johnson Hawes,of Boston,were widely acknowledged as the finest masters ofthe daguerreotype and photographed many of the leading figures oftheir day. Although their business focused on portraiture, they recognized in photography a vivid new pictorial language of art and communication that captured the optimistic culture and independent spirit ofantebellum America.This extensive exhibition of more than 150 images highlights their self-portraits and landscape views, as well as their experimental works using the daguerreotype in ways many thought were not possible.

The wet collodion process eventually supplanted the daguerreotype. Revolutionizing the young art of photography with its introduction in 1851,the process produced a glass negative and a beautifully detailed print.The process and features of ambrotypes,tintypes, and photographs from this period are on view in "The Collodion Era in Photography," closing at the Amon Carter Museum (817/738-1933; www.cartermuseum.org),in Fort Worth,Texas,on July 31.

A DeafArtist in Early America: The Worlds ofJohn I4rewster, - DECEMBER 31, 2005 ee more than 40 outstanding paintings in this first comprehensive exhibit on the work of John Brewster, Jr., one of the best early American portrait painters.

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A DeafArtist in Early America: The Worlds ofJohn Brewster, Jr is funded in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the American Folk Art Society, Robert and Katharine Booth, and Jon and Rebecca Zoler.

Fenimore Art Museu Route 80, Lake Rd., Cooperstown, NY 13326 kenimoreartmuseu 1-888-54

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LAURA FISHER 1050 SECOND AVENUE,#84 (Between 55-56th Sts.)

NEW YORK,NY 10022 11:00-6:00 Monday—Saturday or by appointment `."

Tel: (21.2) 838-2596 (after hours)(212) 866-6033 laurafisherquilts.com info@laurafisherquilts.com

New York City's largest and finest selection of antique quilts, hooked rugs, coverlets, paisleys, Navajos/Beacon blankets, home furnishings, American folk art, and more...

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From a lavish collection of Victorian silk masterpieces.

When in New York City, visit us to discuss ordering: HISTORIC HOOKED RUGS®, our line of outsized rugs and runners in traditional patterns and palette.

FROM THE ORIGINAL®, exact copies of your rug or ours, custom sized and colored to your needs.

SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

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CLERGYMEN / Des Adamu Tesfaw / Ethiopia / c.1980-1995 / 32 78'/ Institute of Ethiopian Studies, Addis Ababa University

ROGER BROWN STUDY COLLECTION As part ofits Historic Artist's Homes and Studios program,initiated by the Henry Luce Foundation,the National Trust for Historic Preservation recently awarded $65,000 to 14 of its 29 member sites throughout the country, one of which includes the Roger Brown Study Collection (773/929-2452; www.artic.edu/saicart/brown).In 1996 artist and collector Roger Brown (1941-1997)gave his extensive collection of art and other artistic and archival materials to the School ofthe Art Institute of Chicago for use as an artist's study collection.The collection is a kaleidoscopic environment offolk art from many cultures, works by selftaught artists, and Chicago Imagist pieces and other contemporary artworks,as well as objects from material and popular culture, costumes, A nook in the Roger Brown Study textiles, furniture, Collection, Chicago travel souvenirs, and other things that Brown surrounded himself with for inspiration.The archive includes Brown's sketchbooks,library, photography, personal and professional correspondence, architectural drawings, studies for large-scale projects, prints, and other works on paper by Brown and other artists. The collection is open to the public and available for view by appointment.

PAINTING ETHIOPIA As part of the Ethiopian Art Heritage Project, the UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History(310/825-4361; www.fowler.ucla.edu) hosts "Painting Ethiopia:The Life and Work of Qss Adamu Tesfaw." Schooled in the philosophy and aesthetics ofthe Ethiopian Orthodox Church,Adamu left the priesthood to paint.Thirty-five paintings from the last forty years, depicting rural and urban life, Ethiopian Christianity, and images of the political and military exploits of Ethiopian rulers, are on view until Sept. 18.

NOTHING SHORT OF A MILAGRO "Pile Milagro! Votive Art from Spain and Mexico"is currently on view at the San Antonio Museum of Art(210/9788100; www.sa-museum.org),in San Antonio, Tex. Although some forms of Mexican votive expression are rooted in pre-Columbian traditions, most can be traced back to Europe, mainly Spain.Throughout much of Europe and Latin America, many devout Roman Catholics use votive art to show thanks for favors and mirades bestowed upon them.Traditionally, votive art is represented in the form ofsmall objects,such as farm animals, body parts, household objects, and other items, made of metal,wax,or wood,that are pinned near a saint's figure, testifying to the maker's return to health following a grave illness or serious accident. Forty-five votive offerings (generally referred to as ex-votos)from the San Antonio Museum's collection are on display until July 10.

THE ANIMAL INSIDE Whether made for utilitarian or decorative use,imaginative woodworked animal forms are admired for their dynamic expressions and the diverse interpretations oftheir subjects. Some engaging examples are grouped in "Animal Sculpture in the Folk Tradition," at the Brandywine River Museum (610/388-2700; www.brandywinemuseum.org),in Chadds Ford,Pa. Carved and whittled wooden animals by artists such as Edgar A. McKillop, Oscar Peterson, and Wilhelm Schimmel are on view until July 24.

EX-VOTO TO SAN FRANCISCO DE PAULA / artist unidentified / Mexico / c.1869 / 7 ,10"/ San Antonio Museum of Art, Texas, Nelson A. Rockefeller Collection of Mexican Folk Art

20 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

LITTLE WOMEN, LITTLE MEN An intimate exhibition at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute (413/458-2303; www.clarkart.edu),in Williamstown, Mass.,"Little Women, Little Men: Folk Art Portraits from the Fenimore Art Museum,"features 11 paintings and one sculpture depicting children.The portraits, many of them in memoriam, include per- LITTLE CHILD WITH BIG DOG / sonal objects William Matthew Prior / Massachusetts / 1848 / oil on canvas / connected 42 36"/ Fenimore Art Museum, with each Cooperstown, New York child's identity and result in serving as a record ofthe social history of the mid-19th century. Artists in this exhibition include Asa Ames,Erastus Salisbury Field, Sturtevant J. Hamblin, Samuel Miller, Ammi Phillips,William Matthew Prior, and Joseph Whiting Stock.The show remains on view until Oct.9.

Country Graves' Gallery Art by the people 15 North Cherokee Lane • Lodi, California 95240 (209)368-5740•(209)473-7089 email: graves@gravescountry.com www.gravescountry.COM hours: Fri. - Sat. 10:30 - 5:00 or by appointment

My daddy was a preacher that work on a Farm, and drives the John Deere Tractor. Mommy loves to smoke her pipe even while picking cotton. Milking the cow was always my oldest sister Betty job. Us children had to work too. — Juanita Leonard of Louisiana -Thank you America for letting my art into your life."

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You Must Withstand the Wind Transformation of the urban landscape

by Mark Anthony Mulligan Available October - December 2005 16,4 5•0

A traveling exhibition from Kentucky Folk Art Center

Kentucky Folk Art Center • 102W.First Street • Morehead,KY 40351

I

606.783.2204

KFAC is a cultural,educational and economic development service of Morehead State University.

www.kyfolkart.org

SUMMER 2005

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21

MINIATURES

FOUR SHOWS AT THE SHELBURNE The Shelburne Museum (802/985-3346; www.shelburnemuseum. org),in Shelburne, Vt., has four notable shows on view this summer,all ofwhich close Oct.31.

"Twenty-five American Quilts and the Women Who Made Them"examines and illustrates how information known about a quilt, or its ambiguous clues, contributes to its historical and artistic importance. Signatures and inscriptions on the album,applique, chintz-applique, pieced, and whole-cloth works in the show guide viewers through the process ofinterpreting their often long and fascinating origins and histories.

Another exhibition showcasing women and their textiles, "These United States: 50 Statehood Rugs by Molly Nye Tobey," presents one ofthe major achievements of20thcentury rug hooking.Tobey(1893-1984) designed and hooked 50 rugs between 1943 and 1961,each bearing her vision ofa state's identity and heritage, ranging from clear, figural renderings of her home state ofRhode Island to a kaleidoscopic abstract impression of Oregon.

Beginning July 23,"All That Glitters: 19th- and 20thCentury Tinsel Pictures" is the museum's first exhibition of the nearly forgotten form of American folk art now enjoy0;4 0114 *****—‘," ing renewed atten0a4 0414 01114 0104 tion.Tinsel pictures AA • are lined with thin 01P4 04P4 014 metallic foil that ••• *4114 04114 0104 0404 shines through the .4,, A. Ak • Alk back of glass *404 044 0104 painted with trans* • 01114 0104 004 0-404 parent colors. Still •* * lifes, landscapes, 0-4114 0404 0104 * animals, and a poster-size portrait ROSE AND BUD QUILT / Elizabeth Ruth Colburn / of 19th-century Pittsford, Vermont / mid-19th century / appliquéd singer Jenny Lind and quilted cotton / 92 x 88"/ Shelburne Museum, are on view in this Shelburne, Vermont shimmering show, lit with simulated candlelight to emulate the way in which they were often originally displayed.

Finally, after 18 months ofrenovations, the Variety Unit, the Shelburne Museum's primary decorative arts gallery, has reopened. New,dynamic installations of dolls, dollhouses, automatons, toy trims,glass, pewter,scrimshaw, metalware, and ceramics are now on view.

TWO TRAVELING SHOWS SWING BY NEW YORK "Bill Traylor and William Edmondson: African American Art and the Modernist Impulse," organized by the ICrannert Art Museum, Champaign,Ill., is at the Studio Museum in Harlem (212/864-4500; www.studiomuseum.org)through July 3.

Approximately 50 drawings and paintings

by Traylor and 25 sculptures by Edmondson are on view, as well as period photographs ofthe artists working within their communities by Edward Weston,Louise Dahl-Wolfe,and Charles Shannon.This is the first exhibition to examine Traylor and Edmondson within the broader context of American and European art and culture of the first halfofthe 20th century, drawing comparisons between the work ofthese two FIGURES AND CONSTRUCTION WITH BLUE BORDER / Bill Traylor / Montgomery, Alabama / self-taught artists and the modernist and c. 1939-1942 / poster paint on cardboard / avant-garde works ofthe academic art 151 / 2 8"/ American Folk Art Museum, gift of world.The show is accompanied by a cataCharles and Eugenia Shannon, 1991.34.1 log,Meditations on Black Aesthetics.

The new Museum of Biblical Art(212/408-1500; wvvw.americanbible.org)in Manhattan, part ofthe American Bible Society, opened in May with its inaugural exhibition,"Coming Home! Self-Taught Artists,the Bible, and the American South," on view until July 24.The museum,which aims to create a new model for exploring the meaning ofreligious art and artifacts in culture, chose the show, which was organized by the Art Museum ofthe University of Memphis, for its examination of modern-day folk art in the South as an outgrowth ofthe region's deep evangelical Christian roots.

FOLK ART SOCIETY OF AMERICA CONFERENCE The 18th annual conference ofthe Folk Art Society of America(804/285-4532; www.folkart.org) takes place Sept. 29—Oct.2 at the Union League Club of Chicago. Special events include a symposium,"Midwestern Folk Artists, Environments,and Collections," with speakers Michael Noland,Lisa Stone,and others; a 3 benefit auction; and visits to artists'studios and private and public BOY AND WOMAN / William collections.

Dawson (1901-1990)/ Chicago / painted wood / University of Richmond Museums, Virginia

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YOU'D BETTER SHOP AROUND Beginning with the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, colorful lithographed trade cards became an important marketing tool for American businesses and a fad for Victorian women.These colorful prints bear whimsical,lively images that record passing fads, historical events, and fashions. Several dozen examples are on view in "You'd Better Shop Around," at the Allentown Art Museum (610/4324333;www.allentownart museum.org),in Allentown, Pa., until July 17.

RAINVIS ON CONTEMPORARY FOLK ART OUTSIDER ART ART BRUT

RV#50 SPRING 2005 $13.50

HAMTRAMCK DISNEY ROGER CARDINAL KEN GRIMES CRIMINAL TATTOOS ART SINGULIER RUDOV'S SCULPTURE GARDEN OSWALD TSCHIRTNER

FIFTIETH ISSUE OUT NOW www.rawvision.com

CONVERSATION

BY TANYA HEINRICH

Roger Manley is a widely exhibited photographer, a folklorist, a writer, a curator, and a documentary filmmaker. His most recent film, written and co-directed with Peter Friedman, is Mana—beyond belief, a stunningly beautiful feature-length documentary about the notion of power objects that is currently on the festival circuit. While in New York for a screening in February, Roger met with me to discuss the film and the multifaceted ideas it provokes. For more information, go to www.mana-the-nnovie.com.

TH The taglines for the film— "What makes matter matter?" and "Everybody believes in something. A motion picture encounter with power objects and how people believe in them"—go a long way in explaining the premise, but let's start with the word mana.

RM Mana is a Polynesian word used throughout the South Pacific to refer to the spiritual force they believe accumulates in objects, people, or places. Mana has to do with what you know and believe about something,though they say it resides in the objects themselves.The mana of an object is its spiritual power. Maybe the easiest way to understand it is to use an example.IfI were to give you a ballpoint pen without saying any-

thing, you'd probably just toss it once the ink ran dry. But ifI were to tell you that it was found in Elvis Presley's pocket on the night he died, you'd probably behave differently toward it. And you'd probably never use it to write with at all. Suddenly it would seem to have some kind of special attribute that meant something.That attribute is its mana.

Our idea in making the film was to try to show that this mana concept is universal,even though most human languages don't have a word for it. We wanted to show how all people, all over the world, value or venerate something— whether they do it for religious, artistic, economic,historical, or purely personal reasons—and what that reveals about how we think.

ALL FRAME ENLARGEMENTS OF HIGH-DEFINITION VIDEO FOOTAGE FROM MAMA-BEYOND BELIEF, STRANGE ATTRACTIONS, INC., AND ADR PRODUCTIONS, 02001

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TH Some of the segments are completely unexpected,like the fish market in Tokyo and its tuna auction, where a single fish has been known to sell for as much as $174,000,or the Chicago Mercantile Exchange trading floor.

Others depict more typically "spiritual" ceremonial rituals, such as the scene in the Arizona desert in which the Navajo man goes into his hogan or the gilding of the huge boulder on the peak of Mount Kyaikhtyo in Burma.

How did you decide which rituals to document?

RM Our goal wasn't really to go after particular ceremonies or rituals as such,but to go after all kinds ofbehaviors evoked by encounters with examples of mana.Some ofthose behaviors may seem purely ceremonial, but that's mostly an assumption based on having an outsider's point of view, i.e., that ofsomeone who's a non-believer in whatever it is he's observing.The fact is that the kinds ofthings we ourselves do don't always feel particularly ritualistic to us, but when we don't quite understand what is happening in some other culture, it can seem like only a ceremony.

In the film,for instance, there's a scene ofa young Indian couple in Bangalore blessing their new home computer.They sacrifice coconuts to it, light incense, ring bells, and pray toward it. To a non-Hindu,this activity can come across as completely ritualistic. But to a Hindu believer, it makes as much sense—and is as utilitarian—as making sure you have a grounded three-prong plug with a surge protector.They do it in part because they're hoping to help prevent crashes—and who is to say it doesn't work? The Indian man who appears in the film, by the way,is a very highly educated

software programmer. He knows exactly how computers work, certainly far better than I do.

An interesting example ofthe reverse point ofview--that is, of viewing what we do as primarily ceremonial—is provided by the "cargo cults"in Melanesia.These sprang up during the Second World War,when tribal people who had been cut offfrom the rest ofthe world for centuries were suddenly exposed to American G.I.'s and relief workers who set up camp on their islands for a few months or years.The ships and airplanes the Allies arrived in came loaded with all kinds of amazing material goods—or cargo—everything from cigarettes and candy to canvas tents and radios. Since these mysterious foreigners didn't seem to pursue any normal survival activities like hunting,fishing, or growing crops,everything they did seemed ceremonial to the local people, and because of all the goods the strangers had,the locals assumed that these odd ceremonies must be very effective. Cults were founded to practice the same "ceremonies" they witnessed, and still today,in remote parts of Melanesia, there are cargo cult believers who practice close-order marching drills, salute homemade flags and Red Cross emblems, pound on wooden typewriters, and build crude airstrips to encourage the sacred cargo planes to return. So, ritual is mostly in the eye ofthe beholder.In this case,the cargo cultists are only reenacting what they thought were sacred rituals.

But to get back to your question of how we chose what to film, after years of mulling over the idea for the movie and making endless wish lists of all the things we'd like to consider shooting,Peter Friedman and I spent a year traveling around the world

Navajo hogan, northeastern Arizona A Navajo medicine man enters his hogan, a hut formed from a mound of earth in which he communicates with his gods through crystals. Inside, ceremonies are performed to encourage healing, foretell future events, and detect potential enemies.

ERIC GUICHARD

museum cases, no matter how interesting they might be. Each object had to be capable of hav5 ing its story told visually.

We wanted everything we chose to help make beliefitself visible, through the way the objects looked and the ways people behaved Golden Boulder, peak of Mount Kyaikhtyo, Burma (Myanmar) A around them. precariously balanced gilded boulder draws worshippers to witness We wanted at the alignment of the full moon. Atop the boulder is a pagoda said to least one object house a single hair from the head of the Buddha and thought to keep that might gain the boulder from falling over the cliff below. power. We wanted a chance to witness the scouting locations and researchtransfer of mana.We wanted ing. We set a number of paramesomething else that had lost its ters or goals for ourselves that power. We wanted to find somehelped us narrow down which thing that might mean different objects to try to see and which places to visit. We saw the task of things to different people, or something that some people recchoosing objects as a kind of ognized as powerful but others "ensemble casting."In order to didn't. We wanted to look at make our case for the universality things that could be seen as a ofthe process, we felt we needed link—whether to history, a variety of cultures, types of objects, types ofbehavior, types of celebrity, or the spirit world.

These choices were further comvalue, ranges of scale (like how plicated by other considerations. much power did an object hold, Within the limits imposed by our and over how many people), and so on. Each object or place had to finite finances, we wanted to include a range ofraces, religions, make a unique contribution,so social strata,languages, and geothe film wouldn'tjust end up as a graphical locations in order to collection ofrandom examples. show how universal the mana We gradually developed sets of phenomenon is. We couldn't film criteria: The thing or place had to every last thing we wanted to, but still be "alive"—that is, its power we did film in 16 languages on or mana had to still be active, and five continents. people still had to believe in it actively. A site like the Parthenon TH Some ofthe vignettes have an in Athens may be a powerful element ofthe absurd—ripe for piece ofarchitecture, but no one ridicule or parody—and yet your really goes there to worship approach is always neutral. HowAthena anymore. So we ruled it ever, the film's juxtaposition of out, along with all the other ruins and unused artifacts just sitting in what is easily recognized as

‘`sacred"—such as the elaborate dance of Voodoo priests to call upon ancestral spirits in Ouidah, Benin—with pop culture events like the gatherings at Graceland or the cruising of customized lowrider cars in Espanola, New Mexico,enables one to draw new conclusions, and really challenges the notion of belief. Were you and Peter attempting to highlight some ofthe built-in complexities or contradictions?

RM Sure. We wanted to create some moments where viewers would be forced to question their own take on things in a new way.

It's obvious that some kind of transformation—a transfer of mana,if you will—takes place in the Voodoo event in Benin.

Members of the community dress up like their powerful ancestors and then suddenly become the ancestors to such a degree that their close relatives and neighbors not only no longer recognize them,but also truly fear them as returned spirits ofthe dead.

In our own culture, power transformations take place all the time. We chose to show the costuming of Elvis impersonators, though, partly because there are some thought-provoking (as well as funny) parallels with what happens in Benin. Not only do the "Ely"(with a long "i") dress up in the costume of their dead ancestor in order to assume some of his personal power,but onlookers then react as ifthe impersonators had actually become, at least for the duration of a song,a reincarnation ofThe King.

One of the most important criteria we looked for when we were choosing what to film is humor. We didn't want Mana— beyond beliefto be boringly solemn,so whenever we could give the audience a chance to

laugh,we did. It's tricky when dealing with other cultures, though,since the laughter that arises from delight or from a surprise juxtaposition can sometimes be mistaken for the laughter of ridicule. And that was something we certainly wanted to avoid.

Even the Shroud ofTurin scene ends on a lighter note. After several minutes spent in somber examination of the Shroud,the crowd of pilgrims is ordered to head for the cathedral exit to make way for the next batch of visitors, while an electronic voice announces,"We hope you enjoy this spiritual journey." We didn't make this up—we recorded it there on the spot. But it's funny, and the movie viewers appreciate it, too, because after experiencing the darkness ofthe church and all the somber tears ofthe pilgrims, they're ready to lighten up a little, too. Here,the humor emerges from the clash ofthe secular machinery ofcrowd management with the earnestness of their encounter with the sacred.

TH Collectively, the different scenes raise a lot of questions about the nature ofbelief and the transparency or tenuousness of such faith, or even the survival of certain objects or rituals, over time,into this century. One particularly interesting example of mana in perhaps its most conceptual sense is provided by the scene about the painting The Man in the Golden Helmet. For more than a century it hung in Berlin's Kaiser Friedrich Museum as one of Rembrandt's greatest portraits, where it was a popular national icon displayed in a room by itself, surrounded by guards and swarming with visitors. But after testing it in a nuclear reactor, art conservators realized it wasn't by Rembrandt, and now almost nobody

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CONVERSATION Computer blessing, Bangalore, India To protect against crashes, computer viruses, and other potential problems, Hindu families in India call upon the god Ganesha to bless new high-tech gear.

bothers to go see it any more. It's still the same canvas, dating to the same time period, and is good enough to have passed for a real Rembrandt until state-of-the-art technology determined otherwise.

RM I think what happened was that it turned out that all those years people weren't really looking at the painting itselfso much as what they believed about the painting.Their belief that it was an amazingly great artwork was bolstered (at the same time their aesthetic sense was somewhat blinded) by how the painting seemed to reflect their own needs and emotions at the time. As long as it was still considered a work by Rembrandt it still held on to its celebrity mana,since Rembrandt is one ofthe greatest art celebrities along with being one ofthe greatest artists. In other words, people saw the Golden Helmet as great because they were told that since it was a Rembrandt,it must be great. But when science finally cast doubt on the painting's authenticity, the painting suddenly lost its mana.I think the story of the Golden Helmet is funny and sad at the same time, but I'm fascinated how people so often see what they need,or want, to see.

Scientific research has cast doubt on the authenticity of the Shroud ofTurin, too,so much so that the Church itself no longer claims that it is the actual grave cloth ofJesus, but says simply that it"reminds us of the suffering He went through."Yet it's just as popular as ever and still attracts millions of pilgrims whenever it is brought out ofsafekeeping two or three times a century Obviously, it must still answer some key needs on the part of believers.

"Seeing is believing," as they say.

The thing is, when most people

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look at a work of art or a relic they aren't just looking at the object itselfâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;they're seeing a story, too,so even ifit isn't real, it still has the power to fascinate us.

Nowadays the Church says, real or not, it's a holy relic "because it has been sanctified by the belief of millions."I think they are right.

TH The film has no narrative,just a brief introduction at the outset.

Nor does it have a conventional arc ofbeginning, middle, and end.

The cinematography is luxurious, very artful, and each segment lingers long enough to allow for serious immersion into the scene.

For me the experience was like contemplating a photograph and willing it to come to life, and I find that as a result the film resonates with me all these months later. Was the form ofthe film important to the documentation?

crystals, to things that exist largely in the minds of the believers, like commodity futures and imaginary space travel. Then another arc leads from relatively ancient belief systems like traditional Maori and Navajo cultures to things like modern economics and backyard engineering. Finally, the film starts with people for whom mana is largely a matter of learning to accept the powers around them or trying to comprehend them and ends with people who are trying to channel such power toward their own needs.

But for the viewer, all ofthis only emerges slowly in hindsight, since we don't point it out as we go along. It feels more like a wandering stroll through the world, not a heavy intellectual exercise.

RM Absolutely. Peter and I determined early on that we would like the scenes to speak for themselves. Our wish was to get out of the way ofthe audience as much as possible,in order to try to convey the experience of what it might be like to actually visit these places and encounter these objects on one's own. So we decided to trust the viewer's ability to find his or her own way, even though this also meant allowing viewers to get confused once in a while.

You're right about the film not having a conventional narrative structure, but there actually is an arc of developmentâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;or rather, several arcs that sort ofbraid in and out of each other in various ways.The sequence ofscenes generally proceeds from religious examples of mana to more secular examples. It also moves from very concrete objects,like stones and

TH Is there a link between this film and previous projects you've been involved with? I'm thinking of your documentation and preservation of North Carolina artist Annie Hooper's environment of doll-like biblical figures, various exhibitions you curated such as"The End Is Near!"

(American Visionary Art Museum,Baltimore, 1996), and "Think Dinky"(The Modern Museum,Durham,N.C.,1997, an entire show of artworks that could fit in one's pocket), or books like Dear Mr. Ripley: Wonders ofthe Agefrom the Archives of Ripley's Believe It Or Not!or SelfMade Worlds, about self-taught artists' environments. And then there are the exhibitions of your own photos of Australian Aboriginals, Navajos,Inuits, Palestinians, Gullah people.There's obviously an innate curiosity, a peering under the rock, a dismantling of

conventional approaches, but what's the other thread?

RM Probably like a lot of people,I think I've spent a long time trying to find or re-create some missing pieces of myself: I grew up in an Air Force family continually moving from one place to another.

One ofthe most recurrent images from my childhood is of the big yellow Mayflower vans parked in front ofthe house,which always meant we were packing up to go somewhere new again.

Later, when I was grown and began photographing,recording, and curating, I found myself equally drawn to outsider (including self-taught) artists, as well as to tribal people, but for a long time these seemed like separate, unconnected interests. Then about twenty years into my career it finally struck me that they were two different reactions to the same aspect of my own personal history: After growing up constantly uprooted,I felt a tremendous,if unconscious, attraction to people who seemed permanently attached to the land under their feet. Navajos,for instance, can point to the very place where their traditions say they emerged from a hole in the ground, and Aboriginals in Australia know the exact location and story of every rock and tree in their personal territories. At the same time,in outsiders I suppose I saw what I believed at some level were reflections of myself. It seemed that they felt as disconnected from their communities and surroundings as I usually did.

UES BESSE

Voodoo trance spinner In Ouidah, Benin, Voodoo believers assert that touching the spinning cloth cape of a revenant ancestor spirit during an "e'gun-gun" ceremony can cause death.

refine and plan nearly every shot, and unlike even a standard made-for-TV documentary, where you usually have either a formula to follow or a developed narration to illustrate, we could only struggle to "find" the film in all the shots we came back with—it was as Lowrider car, Espanola, New Mexico In Hispanic communities in the ifsomeone were southwestern United States, old cars are turned into lowriders— to hand you a vehicles with customized suspension systems that enable them to newspaper that scrape along only a few millimeters above the pavement and, with hydraulic lifts, to leap and hop. Owners believe the cars bring them had been run recognition, identity, and power. through a shredder and told you to try to make a novel So one strong interest lay in out of the random sentences, gluthe kind of people who had what ing them together like a ransom I wanted, and the other was in note. But notjust any plot would people with whom I identified. do, either; it had to be one that Ofcourse, over the years I've somehow supported the overall modified these concepts—I've goals of the project. since learned that tribal people We began this process by concan feel just as isolated from their structing individual scenes. We'd peers as anyone else, while sotake all the footage of, say, the 0called outsiders can actually be Hanami cherry blossom viewing pillars oftheir communities—but festival we had shot in Kyoto and that's where those early interests build little encounters and then came from, and still do. start looking for ways to string them together into longer pasTH What kinds of decisions went sages. Slowly a sequence of events into the editing process? would start to emerge and cohere: We'd see people coming to view RM Editing Mana—beyond belief was one ofthe hardest intellectual the ancient cherry tree whose blooming marks the emergence of tasks that either of us ever faced. spring, but also (since the tree Peter is fond of pointing out that blooms for only a few days before if you have just ten playing cards, the blossoms fall) reminds them there are more than 3,600,000 of the evanescence oflife. Life is ways to shuffle them—and we to be celebrated,so the people began with trying to sequence 34 drink and party, regardless ofthe scenes! Unlike a scripted feature, weather.The mana ofthe beautiwhere you can determine the fill tree releases them from their story ahead of time and work inhibitions and extends its benewith storyboards and such to

dictions on them. And voila!— there's a little story: a new brick to use in building the film.

Then came the task ofshuffling this story in among all the others from all the other places we shot. Each time one was moved, added,or cut, there'd be a ripple effect through the whole film. Suddenly,too much Christian stuff would show up in scene after scene, or too many scenes with cars, or the placement ofthe funny scenes kept them from being funny or made it seem as if we were trying to mock something else in some other scene—it was like trying to plan the seating for a dinner party of not-so-polite strangers, where you want to keep one end ofthe long table from erupting in a fistfight and the other end from being bored to death. In editing a film like Mana—beyond beliefyou want each scene to get along and have fun with the others, but you don't want it to be too polite or shallow, either. And then it has to wind up being about 90 minutes long, or else the broadcasters or distributors will complain. Ultimately whatever you do is a compromise, and you always miss the guests you finally decided you couldn't invite.

TH Do you yourself hold any objects or rituals sacred?

RM I personally have many objects that mean a great deal to me,but to me alone.Too many things. I'm probably a pathological accumulator. My shelves and closets are crammed with hundreds oftrinkets, souvenirs, artworks, piles of books,rocks, shells, antlers, tools, arrowheads, and family relics.

There are even a couple of anvils.

I suspect it's all another one of my unconscious reactions to having had such a peripatetic

childhood:There must be a subconscious desire now to so burden myselfdown with stuff that the idea ofever moving again becomes more and more dreadful to contemplate.

TH The film ends with footage in Wisconsin ofDr. Evermor climbing into his Forevertron, an exquisite time machine with a glass ball inside a copper egg big enough to hold a man,and which he says will "project him into the heavens on a magnetic lightning force beam."Then at the end, as he's actually getting into the glass ball and preparing to blast off, he says, "So you think, so shall it be!"—a fitting summation of the film.

What's your next project?

RM Nowadays Peter and I are tinkering with combining some other ideas—we're talking about doing something around the nature of truth and illusion—but we're not ready to go public with it yet. So far, the potential for an ongoing collaboration seems good,though—the fact that Peter and I are still willing to think about working together after five years ofsleeping on floors in Chinese Malaysian shophouses, riding crammed into the backs of dump trucks in Burma,driving 15,000 miles around the U.S. in my unair conditioned 1988 Taurus, spending a year in a sweltering French editing room, and attending endless budget meetings with our European co-producers seems like a pretty good omen.*

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THE

COLLECTION:

A

CLOSER

LOOK

BY GERARD C. WERTKIN AND BROOKE DAVIS ANDERSON

receptiveness to visions and prophecy has shaped the beliefs ofthe Shakers from early in their history in 18th-century Lancashire, England, as have the visionary experiences of Mother Ann Lee(1736-1784),who founded the faith and brought it to America in 1774. Over a period of20 years or more that began in 1837,an intense religious revival swept through the Shaker villages. During this period—known in Shaker history as the Era ofManifestations or Mother's Work—Believers,some ofwhom were recognized as "instruments," accepted trances, prophetic utterances,speaking in tongues,spirit communications,and other visionary experiences as a part ofdaily life. Among other manifestations,thousands ofgift messages and songs were "received by inspiration" and recorded,some in the form ofdrawings. A little more than two hundred gift drawings survive, all but a few ofthem the work ofwomen.

Polly Collins was very active as an instrument at the Shaker village at Hancock, Massachusetts,during the revival period. For this and several other drawings, Collins constructed a distinctive grid ofsquares or rectangles,each ofwhich contains stylized figures oftrees, colorful flowering plants, and,occasionally, arbors or other objects.The overall composition ofthese works and their individual elements suggest the design of album quilts. Despite their insularity, the Shakers were not immune to influences from outside their villages. Not only were memories ofthe visual culture ofthe region retained, but new directions in design found their way into Shaker communities through recent converts, publications, and the reports ofthose Shakers who were charged with doing business with the outside world. Decorative bedcovers were not made or used in 19th-century Shaker villages, and album quilts had not become a popular form at the time Collins entered Hancock in 1820. By 1854,however,when she created this drawing, 1 album quilts were widely known,and their influence on this drawing cannot be dismissed.

According to the inscription on the drawing,it was inspired by 34 Mother Ann Lee and intended as a gift to the Church family eldresses at the "City ofUnion."

10 TO During the Era ofManifestations,each Shaker village received a spiritual designation.The community at Enfield, Connecticut,for example,was known as the City of GIFT DRAWING: 1ST MY CHILDREN DEAR, WHOM I DO LOVE / Polly Union, while Hancock Collins (1801-1884)/ Hancock, Massachusetts /1854 / ink, pencil, was the "City ofPeace." and watercolor on paper / 19 x 12"! American Folk Art Museum, promised gift of Ralph Esmerian, P2.1997.2 —G.C.W

A

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UNTITLED / J.B. Murry (1908-1988)/ Mitchell, Georgia / c. 1984 / felt-tip ink, tempera, and oil pastel on mat board / 28 < 22"/ American Folk Art Museum, gift of Elizabeth Ross Johnson, 1985.35.18

.B. Murry was a preacher, and his non-figurative passages are like painted versions of the experience known as speaking in tongues.The fervor of his technique,the lyrical lines— which only he could translate—and the obsessive output of drawings point to innovative and transcendental artmaking. Murry came to drawing and painting late in life. First, he executed his images on found objects and cash-register tape. Later, he was given quality paper and pigments,and even though the material was new to him,the motivation was the same. Murry made art strictly for spiritual and protective purposes; his abstract script formed thoughts that were like prayers, providing guidance and offering support.To interpret divine messages, the artist would sometimes hold a glass bottle filled with water up to the painted surface and conduct a sermonlike reading.

—B.D.A.

Untitled byJ.B. Murry is on view in 'Ancestry and Innovation."

By Lee Kogan

"Self and Subject" is on view at the American Folk Art Museum through September 11, 2005.

Support for the exhibition has been provided by Just Folk/Susan Baerwaid and Marcy Carsey.

"Self and Subject" explores issues of identity and self-awareness as expressed in portraits by contemporary self-taught artists. Portraiture is among the earliest and most persistent of art forms to cross culture, time, and space. Art historians have tried, for centuries, to understand this complex genre, in which purpose and meaning change through context. Si Portraits, with the lure of the sitter's gaze, engage the viewer in a dynamic relationship with both artist and subject.

Although the early documentary function of painted portraiture was superseded by the introduction of photography, the art of capturing a likeness, in a variety of media, continues into the twenty-first century. A portrait may be intended to represent an actual person, but a physical likeness is not an absolute requirement and may,in fact, reveal more of a subject's personality or stature than specific facial characteristics. Artists often probe beneath the surface to expose a sitter's internal character. At other times a portrait functions as a mask, revealing only what the artist wishes the viewer to see. In the process the artist may also reveal a bit of himself or herself. II As illustrated in the works in this exhibition, portraiture by contemporary self-taught artists ranges from very accurate likenesses to charged abstractions. Other works are fantasies that are emblematic or symbolic. Viewed as mirrors of external reality or reflections of an inner life, portraits may be illuminated by their context as well.The challenge of portraiture, and its changeable nature, ensures its continuance as a vital theme in art.

Lee Kogan is the director ofthe museum's Folk Art Institute and curator ofspecialprojectsfor its Contemporary Center.

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29

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olonelJack Francis Evans,according to Henry Darger's surrounding text,is an Angelinnian officer and guardian of the heroic Vivian Girls, the protagonists of Darger's epic 15,000-page novel, The Story ofthe Vivian Girls, in what is Known as the Realms ofthe Unreal, ofthe Glandeeo-Angefinnian War Storm, as Caused by the Child Slave Rebellion. Colonel Evans helped the girls rescue children who were enslaved by the evil adult Glandelineans.In the end,good triumphs over evil, and after much death and destruction, the enslaved children are saved, their captors defeated. When he first aided the Vivian Girls, Evans was a lieutenant.

He was promoted in rank to captain, then to colonel, and,following another war,to the rank of general. Darger wrote that Evans was older and fiercer than he looked in the picture and that he was,in addition, a pugilist.

Darger appropriated the printed image of an actual person from a newspaper or magazine to create this portrait. His manipulation ofthe photograph through overpainting and recontextualizing transformed the unidentified military figure into a new persona.Through this process, Darger actualized Colonel Evans.

Despite the elaborate military regalia worn by the figure, he seems androgynous,with the face of a lovely young woman or innocent young man.

c

30 SUMMER 2005

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om to a German mother and a Russian-Polish, Jewish father, Morris Hirshfield was among a large group of Eastern Europeans who immigrated to the United States around the turn ofthe twentieth century. He settled in New York City and,like thousands ofothers, became a garment worker. Eventually he established himself as one ofthe largest manufacturers ofboudoir slippers in the city. In 1937 Hirshfield retired and began to paint, ultimately completing seventy-two canvases. His favorite subjects were women and animals. He made preliminary drawings and arranged them on canvas, as he would with a pattern for a garment. Characteristic of his style are bold patterns, bright colors, and fabriclike textures painted in a flattened fashion.

In this painting, Hirshfield presents an idealized version of the human female—her amply proportioned body suggests the stiff dressmaker forms ofthe 1920s. Hirshfield never used a live nude model,the generally prim gentleman saying that"it wouldn't be proper at my age."

The painting is an erotic fantasy oflonging and desire, yet the yearning is tempered by reticence.

Hirshfield was conscious of himself as an artist and wanted to be recognized as one. By the time this painting was completed,just months before his death, Hirshfield was represented by an agent, and his work had been included in gallery shows as well as two exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art.

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UNTITLED (Portrait of Colonel Jack Francis Evans) Henry Darger (1892-1973) Chicago Mid-twentieth century Watercolor, pencil, ink, and collage on board / 2” 14 111 American Folk Art Museum purchase, 2002.22.5

THE ARTIST AND HIS MODEL (detail) Morris Hirshfield (1872-1946) Brooklyn 1945 Oil on canvas 44 34" American Folk Art Museum, gift of David L. Davies, 2002.23.1; art ® Robert and Gail Rentzer for Estate of Morris Hirshfield, licensed by VAGA, New York

SELF-PORTRAIT Mose Tolliver (b.1919/1921) Montgomery, Alabama 1978 House paint on plywood 20% 16%' American Folk Art Museum, gift of Robert Bishop, 1987.11.3

ose Tolliver, a prolific African American artist from Montgomery, Alabama,has painted several versions of himselfâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;head,bust, and full-lengthâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;using house paint on plywood or Masonite in a basic palette oftwo or three colors at a time. Working wet on wet, he occasionally adds real hair (his own)for verisimilitude. His portraits are abstract, the selfportrait illustrated here is especially intense.The dripping red paint around his upper lip may have been accidental, but it exudes, along with the oddly asymmetrical arrangement ofthe eyes, bared white teeth, and varied nostril and eye sizes,ferocity and terror. In other self-portraits,Tolliver demonstrates his artistry as a strong colorist and achieves a variety of moods from different tonal color combinations. His softened palette tempers the general effect, though the asymmetrical features are jarring and surprisingly placed.

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MOTHER SYMBOLICALLY RECAPTURED / THE KATHREDAL A.G. Rizzoli (1896-1981) San Francisco 1937 Colored inks on rag paper 301 / 4 501 / 4" Collection of M. Anne Hill and Edward V. Blanchard Jr.

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chilles G. Rizzoli created several small portraits of people to inhabit his fantasy city,Y.T.T.E. (Yield to Total Elation). Although a trained architectural draftsman, his most remarkable drawings are symbolic depictions ofactual people in his life, such as his mother, people he worked with, and children in his San Francisco neighborhood.The outstanding architectural drawings he called symbolizadons combined a fantastical vision with conventional architectural elements, including decorative formal titles, elevations, and textual details, sometimes with a humorous touch.

As architectural historian Kenneth Day has noted, Rizzoli understood the Beaux Arts theory ofarchitectural character—that buildings can manifest human traits, such as spirituality, strength, dignity, hospitality, and gaiety.

Rizzoli created several"Kathredals" to honor his beloved mother.This example is the most elaborate and fully developed. A bachelor all his life, Rizzoli was closely attached to his mother, and he slept at the foot of her bed in the small house they shared until she died,in 1937. Following her death, Rizzoli continued for several years to write her birthday cards. Like his mother, Rizzoli was intensely religious; he paid her the highest honor by depicting her as a Gothic cathedral, which exemplified her spiritual solidity and her grace.

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ver a period ofsome thirty years, Morton Bartlett, a Boston print broker, sculpted approximately fifteen figures ofchildren and adolescents from cast plaster with exacting detail. He then painted, dressed—in clothing he sewed,knitted, or crocheted—and photographed them in intimate family groups,reading,sleeping,laughing, and weeping.This young girl,like his other figures,is meticulously precise as a result of Bardett's skill and research, using books, popular magazines, and children's growth charts.

Bartlett commented on his pastime in a Harvard yearbook ofthe class of 1932:"Its purpose is that of all proper hobbies to let out the urges which do not find expressions in other channels." Except for one published article,few people knew of his dolls or photographs during his lifetime. His artmaking was a private activity.

A GALLERY, NEW YORK

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DOLL Morton Bartlett (1909-1993) Boston 1950-1965 Paint on cast plaster with synthetic hair and fabric 26 11 ; 9" Collection of Dr. Sin i von Reis

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33

ugene Von Bruenchenhein made and hung a gold-incised plaque in his kitchen, reading,"Eugene Von Bruenchenhein/Freelance artist/Poet and Sculptoranovator [sic] Arrow maker and plant man/Bone artifacts constructor/Photographer and Architect/Philosopher." Many of his grand intentions as an artist were realized in his creation of works in a variety of formsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;paintings,sculptures, ceramics, writings, and musical instruments. But Von Bruenchenhein's most compelling works are the photographs: a few self-portraits, experiments with double exposures, and, most remarkably, thousands of portraits of his wife, Marie,in a multiplicity of classical as well as Hollywoodinflected poses,frequently nude and sometimes transformed with crowns,jewelry, and swaths offloral fabric. In this photograph, Marie takes on the role of a starlet ofthe 1940s and '50s,like the winsome natural beauty Maureen O'Hara.

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oseph Aulisio's portrait of his employee Frank Peters suggests that, for the artist, capturing the subject's personality was as important as creating a likeness. Although painted portraiture became obsolete as a documentary form with the ascendancy ofphotography, artists have continued to capture nuances of personality and emotion in their renderings of others and themselves. Peters worked as a tailor at Lease Cleaners, a dry-cleaning establishment that Aulisio owned,in Old Forge, Pennsylvania.The artist knew his subject well, as he worked with him daily, and he depicted the elderly man with unstinting honestyâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; deep furrows and wrinldes on his brow and cheeks and hands suggest years of hard work. Aulisio in this painting celebrates the working man,just as painters ofprevious centuries honored ministers,ship captains, doctors, and lawyers.

Aulisio began to paint as a hobby when arthritis of the knee severely limited his physical activity.

Starting with a paintby-numbers set that his wife gave him as a Christmas present in 1952, he completed approximately fifty pictures, several portraits among them.

Painting was a relaxing and satisfying activity for Aulisio, who found little pleasure in his drycleaning business.*

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UNTITLED (Marie with Flowers in Hair, Cropped at Bust) Eugene Von Bruenchenhein (1910-1983) Milwaukee After 1940 Hand-colored gelatin silver print 7 5" American Folk Art Museum, gift of Lewis and Jean Greenblatt, 2001.23.5

mong John Kane's powerful paintings are several self-portraits that reveal different facets ofthe artist's selfimage. Of Scottish ancestry, the Pittsburgh artist and former gandy dancer and boxcar painter went beyond superficial realism in his deeply moving, psychological portraits, depicting himself as a complex,often troubled man.Unlike the large, frontal self-portrait in the collection ofthe Museum of Modern Art that presents Kane as a strong, vital man,this smaller work portrays the artist responding indirectly to his mirrored reflection, in profile view.The inclusion oflines from the poem "To a Louse"by eighteenthcentury Scottish poet Robert Burns reinforces the sense ofintrospection and irony.

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SEEN IN THE MIRROR John Kane (1860-1934) Pittsburgh 1928 Oil on canvas 8/ 1 2 .

6/ 3 4" Collection of Janice and Mickey Cartin

PORTRAIT OF FRANK PETERS (detail) Joseph P. Aulisio (1910-1974) Old Forge, Pennsylvania 1965 Oil on Masonite 27/ 1 4 x 191 / 2" American Folk Art Museum, gift of Arnold B. Fuchs, 1978.8.1

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"Ancestry and Innovation" is on view at the American Folk Art Museum through September 4, 2005.

ANCESTRY & innovation

African American Art from the Collection

By Stacy C. Hollander and Brooke Davis Anderson

SNAIL TRAIL QUILT (detail) Mary Maxtion (b. 1914) Boligee, Alabama 1990 Cotton 89/ 1 2. 77" Purchase made possible in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, with matching funds from the Great American Quilt Festival 3, 1991.13.2

"Ancestry and Innovation" surveys the American Folk Art Museum's rich collection of contemporary work by self-taught African American artists. Almost since its inception, in 1962,the museum has explored the creativity of African Americans through its exhibitions, collections, and publications. In March of 1965 the museum presented limestone carvings by Tennessee artist William Edmondson.This monographic show in the earliest years of the museum's life launched an institutional commitment to the work of African American vernacular artists. I The work of an African American artist first entered the collection in 1972, only a decade after the founding of the museum; Seeking Gold in the West is a bas-relief by renowned artist/barber/preacher Elijah Pierce. Since then, drawings, sculptures, paintings, and quilts by black artists have become an important aspect of the museum's holdings, and twentieth-century artists are represented through a significant number of works. I In 1990 the museum received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to purchase works by highly regarded contemporary artist Thornton Dial Sr. and other artists within his family constellation. The following year the museum received a second grant to purchase the work of African American quiltmakers in the rural South, whose unique artistry was just beginning to be widely recognized.

More recently, several major gifts, including the Blanchard-Hill Collection as well as individual works by acclaimed artists Horace Pippin, Bill Traylor, and William Edmondson, have contributed to the depth and diversity of the museum's collection in this area. I "Ancestry and Innovation" includes paintings and sculpture by an elder generation of creators, such as Sam Doyle, David Butler, Bessie Harvey,and Clementine Hunter; works by contemporary masters such as Thornton Dial Sr.; and provocative pieces by emerging artists such as Kevin Sampson and Willie LeRoy Elliot.Juxtaposed with powerfully complex and vibrant quilts, the selection celebrates the ongoing contribution of African American artists to the kaleidoscope of American cultural and visual experience.

Stacy C. Hollander is the museum's senior curator and director ofexhibitions. Brooke Davis Anderson is the director and curator of the museum's Contemporary Center.

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37

lementine Hunter, Artist, 50 cents a look" announced a sign on the artist's studio door.

Inspired by her experiences, Clementine Hunter began her artmaking career late in life with memory paintings,documenting her community at work, at play, and at church. Hunter worked with oil paint, watercolor, and acrylic on artist's board as well as various found materials. Simple forms and shapes crafted with dynamic,punchy color combinations identify the artist's canvases.

She approached many of her compositions in the same way—a strip ofcolor at the base to suggest the ground and a swath ofblue and white brushstrokes cresting at the top,to imply the sky.The main scene—whether it is secular or sacred— is sandwiched in between. Bold,flat coloration further eliminates depth and dimension. In spite of this artistic strategy, the jaunty color and fat, voluptuous brushstrokes bring vibrant life to the subjects.

Black Matriarch is one of several silhouette portrait busts the artist painted, each with a spectacularly vivid head cloth; this one is particularly evocative of a patchwork quilt or African textiles.

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—B.D.A. BLACK MATRIARCH (detail) Clementine Hunter (1886/1887-1988) Melrose Plantation, Natchitoches, Louisiana c. 1970s Oil on cardboard 24 .16/ 1 2" Gift of Mrs. Chauncey Newlin, 1991.23.4

DIAMOND STRIP QUILT Lucinda Toomer (1888/1890-1983) Macon, Georgia c. 1975 Cotton corduroy, flannel, velvet, and wool 79/ 1 2 661 / 4" Gift of William Arnett, 1990.7.1

ucinda Toomer grew up on her family's farm in Georgia.In her later years she remembered childhood on the farm as a better time,when "everything people had,they made." She also recalled being awakened each night during her twelfth year, when her mother would come into her room to teach her to sew and quilt. Toomer was very conscious ofthe effects of color and placement in her quilts, remarking that "a strip divides so you can see plainer.... red shows up in a quilt better than anything else ... you can see red a long while."In this example,red is used to powerful effect as vertical slashes in long strips, providing strong contrasts in blocks ofdiamonds. Art historian Maude Wahlman has noted that the pattern oflight and dark triangles and squares evokes a special cloth dyed by Nigerian women to symbolize the spots ofa leopard, whose attributes of power and courage were admired and emulated in male societies. Toomer was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship in 1983, shortly before her death.

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—S.C.H.

The American Folk Art Museum's collection of African American quilts was initiated in 1990 with the gift of Lucinda Toomer's remarkable corduroy Diamond Strip Quilt. This inspired a deep investigation into a facet of American quiltmaking that was largely unexplored at the time and that enriched the museum's commitment to presenting quilts as a significant art form. The gift coincided with a growing interest among scholars and historians in the identification of African retentions in creative expressions emerging from black communities, and the specific relationship between African American-made quilts and African textile traditions. In 1991 the museum invited art historian Maude Southwell Wahlman to identify quilts made by rural southern African American quiltmakers for purchase with funds provided by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

These funds were matched through the Great American Quilt Festival, an event sponsored by the museum through 1993. A collection of twenty contemporary quilts was assembled, primarily from Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama. Each example responded directly to seven characteristics identified by Wahlman as being related to ancestral textile traditions from Africa.

These traits-vertical strips, bright colors, large designs, asymmetry, improvisation, multiple patterning, and symbolic forms-were explored in the exhibition and its corresponding publication, Signs and Symbols. Today, of course, it is recognized that these signifiers represent but a particular slice of the important aesthetic contributions African American artists have made to the history of quiltmaking in America.

The noted critic bell hooks writes eloquently of two houses that formed her own ideas about aesthetics: the home of her quiltmaker grandmother and the home in which the writer herself was raised. From her grandmother's house she learned the "aesthetic of existence," in which the recognition of beauty is independent of material lack or abundance. Many of the quilt artists whose works are included in this exhibition started making quilts for utilitarian purposes and from "make do" materials. Most were taught to quilt by their mothers or grandmothers and have, in turn, taught their own daughters. Patterns and techniques have been passed down through generations, remembered, reinterpreted, and ultimately changed through time. Present in each of these quilts is the echo of a path that has been followed before and that has been traced again. Yet through this cycle of ancestry and innovation, each quiltmaker has dreamed something entirely new.

-S.C.H.

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39

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STRIP VARIATION QUILT Mozell Benson (b. 1934) Waverly, Alabama 1991 Cotton and wool with synthetic yarn 701 / 2 89" Purchase made possible in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, with matching funds from the Great American Quilt Festival 3, 1991.13.9

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trip piecing is a primary construction technique in West African and Caribbean textiles. Narrow strips are woven on small portable looms, traditionally by men, and then stitched together to form larger textiles. Variations in both the weaving and the piecing introduce intentional as well as serendipitous patterns.

Idabell Bester's Strip Quilt bears a close resemblance to the warp and weft ofWest African men's woven cloth. Her artful use of narrow strips ofalternating solid and striped fabrics simulates woven strips. These are interspersed with structural stops ofa strongly contrasting color.

—S.C./I.

ozell Benson began quilting to fulfill her family's need for bedcovers. Over time, making quilts became a constant in her life, a creative act she could always return to:"IfI got so I couldn't use part of my body, as long as I had eyes to see and hands I could still find something to do." Using large, geometric pieces of fabric that she composes intuitively into compelling "landscapes," Benson does not quilt the layers but instead tacks them together with yarn or heavy thread. From a distance Strip Variation Quilt takes on the aspect of an aerial view or topographic map punctuated by fields oftacking yarns.In 2001 Benson was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship.

—S.C.H.

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STRIP QUILT (detail) ldabell Bester (?-c. 1992); quilted by Losie Webb (dates unknown) Alabama Pieced 1980, quilted 1990 Cotton and synthetics 83 71" Gift of Helen and Robert Cargo, 1991.19.4

or more than thirty years, David Butler delighted neighbors and visitors when he rode his bicycle—decorated with tin cutout sculptures and painted pinwheels— around his neighborhood in Patterson, Louisiana. Butler also enjoyed giving tours of his home environment, which was similarly covered with painted metal cutouts constructed into animals, people,icons, and emblems from the artist's imagination and life experience. He worked a number ofodd jobs in local sawmills until a forced retirement at age 62, at which point he started to create art.

Inspired both by his faith and his dreams, Butler(son of a carpenter and missionary) made his artwork from flattened roofing tin readily available in his rural, southern environs. He would adorn the metal with vivid paint and found objects,like a plastic ribbon bow,then display his works of art throughout his yard.

—B.D.A.

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LADY IN STRIPES David Butler (1898-1997) Patterson, Louisiana c. 1982 Painted tin with plastic and satin bows 281 / 4. 141 / 2" Gift of Elizabeth Ross Johnson, 1985.35.11

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41

rtmaking became an act of healing for Kevin Sampson when he sought reliefin his life after the tragic deaths of his wife, a newborn son, and a favorite cousin. A retired police officer living in Newark, New Jersey, Sampson collects ephemera and discarded objects from the streets and creates sculptural portraits, or tributes to people.

This work is a portrait of Avada Oatmen,the artist's best friend's grandmother and the wife of Bishop Oatmen,the leader of the Holy Temple Church of God and Christ in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Sampson grew up in Elizabeth and sang in the church choir.The Sampsons and the Oatmens share four generations offamily and friendship.The artist created this work to acknowledge his elder, who was a quiet and powerful presence during Sampson's childhood.The artist describes his use of material this way:"I find whole lives in Dumpsters....I make things to honor people who have been here."

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MOTHER OATMEN: LAY FLAT IN THE WAGON Kevin Sampson (b. 1954) Newark, New Jersey 1999 Mixed media / 2 " 26 23 91 Gift of Jacqueline Loewe Fowler, 2000.7.2

ary Maxtion's love of making quilts was learned from her mother,who died when Maxtion was a young girl. Her earliest quilts were constructed from small strips offabric, called strings. This was sometimes a strategy ofthrift and recycling, as the strings represented the smallest reclaimable piece offabric. Maxtion has made quilts most of her life, and a profound sense of vitality and confidence emanates from her visually powerful work. Employing strong contrasts ofbrilliant color in bold geometric forms, a single repeated motifexplodes in scale and bursts out ofthe boundaries ofthe quilt. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;S.C.H.

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hornton Dial is always "making things" and "making ideas." For more than two decades he has created a collection of paintings, assemblages,sculptures, and works on paper greatly admired by the artworld.The apparent parallels among his work and the work of artists involved in the academic arena have brought a remarkable level ofcritical recognition and success to someone who was not seeking it. Fully engaged in historical and societal issues, the artist is as much a part of the story as he is the storyteller, and women hold a place of special importance in Dial's world,dominating his many works on paper. His art typically expresses his insights on topics ranging from the intimate to the communal,particularly racism and oppression in America.* â&#x20AC;&#x201D;B.DA

SNAIL TRAIL QUILT Mary Mastion (b.1914) Boligee, Alabama 1990 Cotton 891 / 2 77" Purchase made possible in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, with matching funds from the Great American Quilt Festival 3, 1991.13.2

42 SUMMER 2005

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GAVIN ASHWORTH

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LIFE GOES ON (detail) Thornton Dial Sr.(6.1928) Bessemer, Alabama 1991 Watercolor, charcoal, and pencil on paper 30 x 221 / 2 " Gift of Ron and June Shelp, 1992.19.4

FIGUREHEADS IN NINETEENTHCENTURY NEW YORK AND BOSTON

By Ralph Sessions

Possibly JENNY LIND Artist unidentified Northeastern United States C. 1850-1860 Painted wood 37/ 1 2x12/ 1 2x 111 / 2" The Mariners' Museum, Newport News, Virginia

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round the turn of the nineteenth century, Philadelphia was generally considered to be the most important shipbuilding center in the United States. As the country's most populous city and the national capital from 1790 to 1800, it had more experienced naval architects, shipbuilders, and tradesmen than anywhere else.' By the close of the War of 1812,though, the tide was beginning to turn in favor of New York City Several geographical and economic factors conspired to give New York an advantage in both national and international trade, including the size and ease of access to its harbor. In addition, the opening of the Erie Canal in 1825 created a direct water link to the Great Lakes and the Midwest. Before long, the East River shipyards below 12th Street were the busiest in the country.

The increased shipbuilding activity naturally enough brought more work to New York carvers, and their numbers swelled proportionally. The situation had been quite different in the eighteenth century, when the few workshops that did exist in New York City offered little competition to those in Boston and Philadelphia. Then around 1789, Simeon Skillin III (1766-1830), of the famous Boston shipcarving family, relocated to New York. He was active as a carver until 1822, when he entered the crockery business.

Ten years later, Daniel Train (act. c. 1799-1812), a young carver from Philadelphia, placed an advertisement in the New York Gazette and GeneralAdvertiser that read:

HERCULES (for the USS Ohio) Jeremiah Dodge (1781-1860) and Cornelius N. Sharpe (act. c. 1810-1828) New York City 1820 Painted wood Approximately 48" high Village of Stony Brook, New York

Daniel N. Train, Carver, No. 144 Cherry-street, near the Ship Yards, offers his professional services to the citizens of New-York and others, particularly owners and builders of ships.

Having studied Naval Sculpture under Wm. Rush, of Philadelphia, whose talents are extensively known, he hopes, from this advantage and his future exertion, to merit the patronage he now solicits. Heads and other ornamental parts of ships will be excepted or prepared with neatness and dispatch.'

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ANDREW JACKSON (for the USS Constitution) Laban Smith Beecher (1805-1876) Boston 1834 Gessoed and painted wood 118" high Museum of the City of New York, gift of the Seawanahaka Yacht Club, 52.11

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With their connections to well-known shops in Boston and Philadelphia, Skillin and Train were the leading carvers in New York City at the turn ofthe nineteenth century As New York became a major shipbuilding center, though, other men assumed prominence. Chief among them were two members of the Dodge family, Jeremiah (1781-1860) and his son Charles J. (1806-1886), who together and separately operated successful workshops from about 1804 to 1870. Three pieces known to have been executed by the Dodges illustrate the range oftheir work One is a bust of Hercules carved in 1820 by Jeremiah Dodge and his partner, Cornelius N. Sharpe (act. c.

1810-1828), for the USS Ohio, the first ship to be built in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. A fine piece of work, the figure's powerful torso rises from a well-rendered lion's pelt and scroll. After being removed from the Ohio when she was decommissioned in 1883, Hercules spent several decades in front ofthe Canoe Place Inn in Hampton Bays, New York. Around 1945, it was moved to the village green in Stony Brook,New York.3 The second carving is a head of Andrew Jackson made by the Dodges in 1835 to replace one that was surreptitiously removed from the figurehead of the USS Constitution while she was being refitted at the Boston Navy Yard.Therein lies a tale of political passions and the symbolic power of figureheads that bears repeating.

In the early 1830s, the Navy Department proposed scrapping the famous frigate due to the extensive damage she had suffered during the War of 1812. Oliver Wendell Holmes led the fight to save her with his poem "Old Ironsides" and galvanized the country with his opening line, "Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!" The Navy eventually relented to public pressure and had the vessel rebuilt in Boston. During the course of the work, President Andrew Jackson visited the city and received such an enthusiastic reception that it was decided to place a figurehead of him on the Constitution's prow instead of re-creating the original piece. Laban Beecher (1805-1876) was commissioned to carve a monumental ten-foot figure ofJackson in contemporary dress, hat in hand, and draped in a cloak that was said to be his customary riding habit.

While working on the figure, Beecher received an offer of $1,500 from some ardent anti-Jacksonians to allow the piece to be stolen from his shop. This was not an insignificant sum, particularly considering the fact that his final bill to the Navy was only $300. The patriotic carver immediately informed naval officials of the plot, and the partially completed figure was moved from his shop to the Navy Yard so that the work could proceed without further interference. Nevertheless, soon after it was mounted on the Constitution, in April 1834, the Navy received threats against it. As a precautionary measure, the ship was moved away from the docks to a mooring in the harbor.

A few months later, on a rainy night in July, a young man named Samuel Dewey rowed out to it and, escaping the notice of armed sentries, sawed the head off the figure. The public reaction to the news of the desecration was immediate and predictable, as anti-Jacksonians responded with glee and their counterparts condemned the treachery. Political cartoons and poems from both sides appeared in newspapers throughout the country while the secretary of the Navy personally visited the ship and ordered the figure draped in canvas. The Constitution finally left Boston the following March and sailed for New York with a flag covering the still headless figure. Within a few days

of its arrival, Dodge & Sons had supplied Andrew Jackson with a new cranium, and the ship quickly departed for France.'

As fascinating and revealing of contemporary attitudes as this little tale of intrigue might be, the work around which the controversy swirled is not a particularly remarkable piece of carving. Beecher's figure of Jackson is somewhat stiff and lifeless, with little ofthe animation that might be expected in a figurehead portrait of such a dynamic national hero. The Dodges' head is an adequate representation with recognizable detailing of facial features, though again it does not transmit much of a sense of the vitality of the man it represents.

Much more accomplished is a portrait bust of Jeremiah Dodge done by his son Charles around 1835. The piece descended in the family until it was given to the New-York Historical Society in 1952, which makes it a rare and important example with a clearly documented history. Its well-modeled face is quite distinctive and individualized in a sensitive portrait of the man, with boldly swirling hair carved in the sure strokes of a master shipcarver. The costume, too,is finely detailed and crisply rendered. The carver used his wooden medium to the best advantage, while at the same time demonstrating his familiarity with contemporary academic models more commonly rendered in marble. It is certainly a fitting tribute to a man who was one of the leading shipcarvers ofhis day.

Overall, Charles Dodge's career spanned the last major era of wooden shipbuilding. When he began his apprenticeship with his father around 1820, American shipyards were responding to the increased demand for merchant vessels that resulted from a period of national prosperity and the continued expansion of international trade routes that followed the wars of the previous decade. Twenty years later, when Charles Dodge was a master carver in his own right, American shipbuilders and naval architects were perfecting the design of the clipper ships, those fast and sleek vessels that dominated international trade for a generation. The 1840s also witnessed great improvements in wooden-hulled steamships, in both the paddle wheelers that plied the rivers and inland water routes and the oceangoing vessels that Boston. When Charles Dodge retired in 1870, only one combined sail and steam. The California gold rush that shipyard was still in operation in Manhattan, while four began in the late 1840s brought many more orders to East others in Brooklyn and across the Hudson River in New Coast shipyards, and,for a time, builders in major ports like Jersey were struggling to survive. Most of the sailing ships that were still being built came from Connecticut, MassaNew York were working at full capacity.

The tide turned quickly, however, and for a variety of chusetts, and, especially, Maine, but their numbers were reasons a significant and irreversible slowdown had begun steadily diminishing.

The ocean clippers ofthe 1840s and '50s represented one by the mid-1850s.The economic depression of 1855 slowed ship construction considerably, and a year later the gold rush of the last significant developments in sailing ship design. was essentially over, which lessened the demand even more.' Descendants of colonial revenue cutters and the so-called By then, the days of wooden sailing ships were numbered Baltimore Flyers, the most radical types, known as sharp or anyway, as evidenced by the metal-hulled vessels built in extreme clippers, were built with one objective in mindâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; Europe that were crossing the Atlantic in increasing num- speed. Through the use of a modified hull design, an bers. American shipbuilders remained wedded to the increased length and sail area, and the elimination of wooden hull for some time to come, but even so, several unnecessary weight, the clippers were the fastest sailing vessels ever seen, developed to satisfy the increasing demand smaller iron ships were built here before 1860.

During the Civil War, government contracts brought a for speed in the lucrative and highly competitive routes to short-lived period of activity to shipyards in the Northern California and the Orient.

Fast ships gained notice in the press and acdaim for the states. In 1866, though, the government sold most of its ships, causing a glut in the market that led to the final owners and builders, which in turn attracted passengers and decline in major shipbuilding centers like New York and contracts for carrying cargo. During the boom years of the

JEREMIAH DODGE Charles J. Dodge (1806-1886) New York City c. 1835 Painted wood 27/ 1 2x 17 x 111/2" The New-York Historical Society, New York, 1952.349

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California gold rush, from the late 1840s until 1856 or so, extreme clippers were often very profitable, even if their cargo capacity was sacrificed in the quest for speed. When the laws of economics reasserted themselves in the late 1850s, new models were developed with less streamlined hulls that carried more freight. Even so, the medium clippers, as they were called, were built to be as fast as possible.

Carvings were reduced to a minimum, usually to only a light stern carving ofsome sort and a figurehead. Gone were the sweeping rails, ornamental brackets, and elaborate sternboards of earlier vessels. The tendency toward the reduction in weight of shipcarving that had begun in the early eighteenth century had reached its logical conclusion.

Many builders opted to forego full-length figureheads on even their largest ships, choosing instead to use the busts and billetheads that had become standard on smaller vessels, or nothing at all. Others continued to commission standing figures, but due to the redesign ofthe clipper bow,the traditional position occupied by the figurehead, almost vertical on a knee or cutwater that was low to the water, was eliminated. The new figureheads were attached higher, at a more inclined angle at the top of a raised and elongated knee, and as a consequence appeared to extend further out, ahead of the ship. The results were even more dramatic than before, as the leaning figure, made all the more conspicuous by the lack of other carvings competing for the viewer's attention, seemed to be actively leading the ship onward in a rush of motion.

In the final era of wooden-hulled sailing ships, then, the figurehead reigned supreme among shipcarvings. No longer a part of a complex program of decoration, it was the central focus. As the most important piece of carved work on the ship, the figurehead was both the survivor and inheritor of an age-old tradition. As if in recognition of this, American carvers produced some of the finest examples offigureheads during the clipper ship period. Designs ranged from lateneoclassical conceptions like one created around 1850 for the Queen ofSheba by John W.Mason,ofBoston,to realistic portrayals of American heroes, such as a figurehead for the ship David Crockett carved by Jacob S. Anderson (1810-1857),ofNew York,in 1853.

In Anderson's piece, the frontiersman stands poised on a scroll with rifle in hand and eyes searching the horizon, ever vigilant as the ship's protector and tutelary deity The ship David Crockett was built in Mystic, Connecticut,in 1853 by George Greenman & Co. She was one of the most successful of all American clippers, plying routes between New York, San Francisco, Liverpool, and elsewhere for nearly forty years. The skillful handling of the figurehead, with its fine modeling and attention to the details of a woodsman's dress, mark Anderson as one of the best carvers of his day.

This was recognized at the time as well. Apparently,the figurehead was so prized that it was rarely mounted on the ship, and certainly not during the rough and dangerous passage around Cape Horn on the route between New York and San Francisco. Instead, it spent most of its time in the ship's hold, which explains why it had survived in such excellent condition.'

Another image believed to have been drawn from contemporary popular culture is an engaging three-quarterlength figurehead that was probably carved between about

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1850 and 1860. For many years, it was thought to represent the "Swedish Nightingale,"Jenny Lind (see page 44).

This is hopeful at best. Several ships were named after the famous singer, and any number of comely midcentury figureheads have since been identified as representing her.

When compared with the many representations in a variety of different media that flooded the country at the time, though, this rendering does not particularly resemble her.

Recent research suggests instead that the figurehead may portray Anna Thillon, a French actress and singer who took the country by storm in the early 1850s. During her triumphant tour of the United States in 1852, a number of

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DAVID CROCKETT Jacob S. Anderson (1810-1857) New York City 1853 Painted wood 82 x 26 x 30" San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, California

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engravings of her appeared in newspapers and magazines, any one of which could have served as a model for this piece.'

Probably the best-known ship to carry the name Jenny Lind was built in 1848 in Donald McKay's shipyard in East Boston, which was one of the most active operations in the country at the time.This figurehead was,in fact, once linked to that ship. While it is now quite clear that no connection between the two ever existed, the attribution highlights the importance of Boston as a shipbuilding center. Throughout the period, Boston maintained its rivalry with New York, and iffewer ships were constructed there overall, the best of them were held in as high esteem as those produced any-

QUEEN OF SHEBA John W. Mason (1814-1866) Boston c. 1850 Pencil and ink on paper Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, Massachusetts

where. Not surprisingly, then, Boston also continued to support a number of accomplished shipcarvers.

John W. Mason (1814-1866), the man who created the drawing for the Queen ofSheba, was one such carver.

While no existing figureheads can be attributed to him with certainty, he was evidently an accomplished carver who was much in demand. He worked for several leading shipbuilders, including Donald McKay as well as Fernald and Pettigrew, of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Mason is also known to have worked in Newburyport, Massachusetts, an important, if smaller, seaport not far from Portsmouth. He received a number of favorable notices in the press and, in one instance in 1853, was praised as "our greatest marine artist." His twenty or so surviving drawings, skillfully rendered in pencil, ink, and wash, suggest that he had some academic training, possibly through contacts with his older brother's printing business. Unfortunately, though,it appears that Mason was a poor businessman who was plagued by financial difficulties, which led to serious family problems and a premature end to his career in the mid-1850s.'

More successful workshops were conducted by members of the Gleason family. By the late 1840s, S.W. Gleason & Sons had become one of the most prominent operations in Boston. In 1850 the shop had five employees, including its founder, Samuel W.Gleason (b. 1800; act. c. 1825â&#x20AC;&#x201D;c. 1854), and his sons,William B.(act. c. 1847-1886) and Samuel W. Jr. (act. c. 1847-1865). Among the many commissions known to have been done by the firm were several figureheads for Donald McKay,including a portrait ofthe English actress Julia Bennett Barrow as Minnehaha and a large eagle's head for the Great Republic that is now in the collection ofthe Mystic Seaport Museum.

When she was built in 1853, the Great Republic was the largest merchant ship in the United States. As a measure of the importance ofsuch shipbuilding ventures, the day of her launching was declared a public holiday, and the event was said to have been attended by more than fifty thousand people. Her celebrity was short-lived, however, and after sailing to New York to be loaded with cargo, she caught fire and burned to the waterline even before departing for her maiden voyage to Liverpool.'

As for S.W. Gleason & Sons, William seems to have been the most talented and resourceful member of the family. A review ofthe clipper Shooting Star in 1851 noted: Her ornamental work was executed by Messrs. S.W. Gleason & Sons; but to Mr. W.B. Gleason belongs the sole credit of having made her figure head.

He is a young artist devotedly attached to his profession, and exhibits a more refined taste in execution of his work than is common to carvers.'

In 1854 William took charge of the family shop, presumably because his father retired. He diversified as well, by doing furniture carving as well as ship work. In 1868 he received a patent for a process for making molded wooden ornaments. The resulting business, William B. Gleason & Co., proved to be quite successful, eventually supporting

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twenty-five employees. He also developed a method for stamping ornamental designs on wood.In 1886 his obituary described him as "a leading ship carver and gilder of Boston ...[and] inventor ofthe pressed ornaments commonly used on furniture?"

Much less is known about another shipcarver who shared the same family name, Herbert Gleason (act. c.

1863-1893). His relationship to S.W. Gleason & Sons and his better-known contemporary William has not been established. He was possibly his brother or perhaps a cousin, but in any event it seems likely that he had family ties of some sort."

Herbert Gleason is particularly important to this discussion because his remarkable figurehead for the famous McKay clipper Glory ofthe Seas has survived. Carved in 1869, the female figure stands on her toes, clutching loosely flowing drapery between her breasts. Generally classical in conception, she wears a necklace and armbands that also reference American Indian adornment.The work is well done and the figure is convincingly articulated, although her somewhat stocky body does not quite approach the neoclassical ideal as seen in contemporary marble sculpture. What is particularly striking, though, is the extent of the nudity. The bare feet, anldes, and arms, when combined with the exposed breasts, are extremely rare for American figureheads. At the time, public opinion was finally coming to accept nudity in the private realm of the fine art gallery or collector's home, but public display was still very controversial.

Glory ofthe Seas was the last great merchant ship to be built by Donald McKay. A large medium clipper, she was universally recognized as a beautiful vessel. She was built at a time when steamships were rapidly eclipsing sailing ships, though, and McKay could not sell her. He had hoped that she would reverse the tide of financial misfortune that he had been experiencing for the past decade. Instead, he was forced into bankruptcy. Still, Glory ofthe Seas was in service for more than fifty years, providing further evidence that McKay was one ofthe best naval architects and shipbuilders of his generation."

E. Warren Hastings (act. 1854-1896), who was Herbert Gleason's partner from the late 1870s until 1893, also had a long and productive career. A number of his designs for figureheads and sterns survive, and while they are less artistically accomplished than those of John Mason, the finely detailed pencil sketches reveal him to have been a competent draftsman. As with many of his contemporaries, Hastings did other types of figure carving in addition to ship work. A rare piece of evidence appears in the journals of Leonard Cushing,ofCushing &White,a firm in Waltham, Massachusetts, that specialized in copper weathervanes. In 1869 Cushing recorded that he commissioned Hastings to carve a figure of Justice for a courthouse in Delaware, Ohio, as well as a wooden model for an Angel Gabriel weathervane."

Before departing from this overview of Boston carvers, we must acknowledge the long shadow cast by that populist hero from earlier in the century Andrew Jackson.Two wellcarved figures of Jackson that can be documented to midcentury Boston have survived. The first is another figurehead for the Constitution that was done in 1846 by

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John and William Fowle while the frigate was in the Boston Navy Yard for repairs. While not as famous as Laban Beecher's 1834 version, it is, in fact, a better work with a more lifelike presence. Its carvers,John D.(1809-1891) and William H.(1813-1862) Fowle, were the sons of Isaac Fowle (1783â&#x20AC;&#x201D;after 1854), the successor to the Slcillin family workshop. Their figurehead of Jackson had a long working life. It remained on the ship until 1874, when it was removed and installed on the grounds of the Philadelphia Navy Yard. It is now in the collection of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis."

The second example is a larger-than-life-size statue carved around 1860 by William H. Rumney (1837-1927).This Jackson figure was commissioned by Daniel Kelly, a prominent East Boston shipbuilder, as a testament to his admiration for the illustrious general and the populist principles of his presidency An ardent Democrat, Kelly apparently also enjoyed antagonizing his anti-Jacksonian neighbors by prominently displaying the figure in front of his home.The inscription,"The Constitution," on the statue's marble base surely refers to the two figureheads carved for the frigate, as well as the controversy surrounding the decapitation of Beecher's figure in 1834.

Although somewhat stiffly rendered, the piece has a commanding presence that is further emphasized by a strong, well-modeled face, wavy hair, and a richness in the details of costuming. Painted white to simulate marble, it is a faithful likeness of its subject, based on the lithograph Andrew Jackson at the Hermitage done in 1832 by John H.Bufford,which was in turn derived from a portrait by Ralph E.W.Earl that was completed around 1830. Upon Kelly's death in 1886, his estate was subdivided into small house lots, but the statue remained in place until after 1949.16*

ANDREW JACKSON William H. Rumney (1837-1927) Boston C. 1860 Painted pine 78 29 19" The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The J.M. Kaplan Fund, Inc., and Mrs. Frederick A. Stoughton Gifts, Harris Brisbane Dick and Louis V. Bell Funds, 1978

Ralph Sessions is director ofdrawings at the Spanierman Gallery, New York. Previously he served as curator ofthe American Folk Art Museum;director ofthe AbigailAdams Smith Museum,New York; and director ofthe Historical Society cfRockland County, New York.

Notes 1 John H.Morrison,History ofNew York Ship Yards(New York Wm.F. Sametz,1909), p.38.

2 New-York Gazette and GeneralAdvertiser, May 25,1799.

3 "Report ofthe Trustees,"AnnualReport ofthe New-York Historical Society(New York New-York Historical Society, 1953), pp.

16-18; Marion V. Brewington, Shipcarvers ofNorth America (Barre, Mass.: Barre Publishing Company,1962), pp.47-48; and Pauline A.Pinckney,American Figureheads and Their Carvers (New York: W.W.Norton,1940), pp. 92-95.

4 The original head,carved by Laban Beecher,was recently reunited with the figurehead.The Museum ofthe City of New York acquired it in 1998 from a private collection in France. Overall, the incident is probably the most frequently recounted story in the literature on American figureheads. See,for example, Robert G.Denig,"Historic Figureheads," Cosmopolitan 14(April 1893):

GLORY OF THE SEAS Herbert Gleason (act. c. 1863-1893) Boston 1869 Painted wood 90" high India House, New York

694-695;William Allingham,"Figure-heads," NauticalMagazine 68(August 1899): 522; and David A.Wasson,"The Silent Pilots," The Outlook 109(January 27,1915):208-209.The most complete accounts appear in Brewington,pp. 129-136, and Pinckney, pp.

103-114.

5 Morrison, pp. 153-154.

6 Octavius T.Howe and Frederick C. Matthews,American Clipper Ships,1833-1858, vol. 1(Salem,Mass.: Marine Research Society, 1926), pp. 124-125; Ralph Whitney,"Davy Crockett, ahoy!," Ships and the Sea (spring 1956): 11; and Brewing-ton, p. 66.

7 See,for example,"Madame Anna Thillon," Gleason's Pictorial2 (February 28,1852): 1.The unpublished research was conducted

by Carol Olsen for the Mariners'Museum in Newport News,Virginia, which owns the figurehead.

8 Mabel M.Swan,"Ship Carvers of Newburyport,"Antiques 48 (August 1945): 81.[Duncan McLean],"The New Clipper Ship Morning Light, ofBoston," Boston Daily Atlas, September 2,1853.

The Mason drawings are in the collection ofthe Peabody Essex Museum. See also Jane L.Port,"Boston's Nineteenth-Century Ship Carvers,"Antiques 158(November 2000): 757-758.

9 Richard C. McKay,Some Famous Sailing Ships and Their Builder, Donald McKay(New York: G.P.Putnam's Sons,1928), p. 231; Georgia W.Hamilton, Silent Pilots:Figureheads in Mystic Seaport Museum (Mystic,Conn.: Mystic Seaport Museum,1984), pp.

35-36.

10 [Duncan McLean],"The New Clipper Ship Shooting Star, of Boston," Boston Daily Atlas, March 6,1851.

11 Brewington,p. 67; Boston Daily Transcript, December 31,1886, quoted in Port, p. 759.

12 Brewington says that Herbert was the son ofSamuel W.Gleason,but this is not certain; see p. 78. See also Pinckney, p. 136.

13 Much has been written about the ship and her builder. See especially McKay,op. cit.; Michael Jay Mjelde, Glory ofthe Seas (Middletown, Conn.: Wesleyan University Press, 1970); and A Descriptive Catalogue ofthe Marine Collection to be Found atIndia House(New York India House, 1935), pp. 51-52.

14 The Hastings sketches are in the collection of the Peabody Essex Museum.See Pinckney, plate IV,for some examples.The Cushing journals are in the collection ofthe Waltham Historical Society An engraving ofthe weathervane appears in Illustrated Catalogue ofCopper Weather Vanes(Waltham,Mass.: L.W.Cushing & Sons,1883), p. 17. See also Myrna Kaye,"Cushing and White's Copper Weather Vanes,"Antiques 109(June 1976): 1225.

15 Brewington,p. 42,136; and Port, p. 756.

16 Thayer Tones,ed.,American Sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum ofArt,vol.1,A Catalogue ofWorks by Artists Born Before 1865(New York: Metropolitan Museum ofArt, 1999), pp.

172-174;Pinckney, pp. 137-138; Georgia Brady Bumgardner, "Political Portraiture:Two Prints ofAndrew Jackson,"American ArtJournal 18, no.4(1986): 84-95; David Tatum,John Henry Bufford:American Lithographer(Worcester, Mass.: American Antiquarian Society, 1976); Alvin Page Johnson,"Introduction," in Alvin R.Page, Under SailandIn Port in the Glorious '50s(Salem, Mass.: Peabody Museum,1950), pp. xxix-xpoc.

This essay has been adapted from Ralph Sessions, The Shipcarvers'Art:Figureheads and Cigar-Store Indians in Nineteenth-Century America (Princeton, NJ.: Princeton University Press,2005).The book,in hardcover with 90 color plates and 32 halftones,is available at the American Folk Art Museum Book and Gift Shop for $75. Museum members receive a 10 percent discount on all shop items.

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CARVED BY

By Laura Lee

SUSAN AMES HOGUE Asa Ames (1824-1851) Probably Evans, Now Vnrk

Boulder History Museum, Boulder, Colorado, gift of Hogue Sr.,

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The Discovery In the late spring of 2003, the surprising discovery of a previously unknown sculpture by Asa Ames at a small history museum in Colorado turned out to be the beginning of a fantastic journey, one that would ultimately lead to a deeper understanding ofthe artist's life.

At the Boulder History Museum the need for mannequins in an upcoming exhibition led me and my colleague Julie Schumaker into the basement of the historic house that is the museum's home. Searching through old exhibition panels in what used to be the toy-storage area, we uncovered what we thought was a child mannequin, swathed in bubble wrap. The sculpture we unveiled, however, turned out to be the likeness of a young girl, standing on a base. Her piercing blue eyes were a bit unnerving at first, but I was overcome with curiosity about the piece when I noticed the amazing detail. Incised along the left side of the base was: "CARV'D Dec., 1849. A. AME"—the E was difficult to distinguish, as the rest of the inscription had been worn off over the years. From her perfect ears to the detailed lace of her pantaloons peeking out from under her gathered skirt,the carving was exquisite.

At an acquisitions meeting at the museum, a board member recognized the distinctive style of the sculpture from an article he'd read in Antiques Magazine about the sculptor Asa Ames, written by Jack T Ericson.' Ames's style and attention to detail is what the board member remembered from the twenty-yearold article. As soon as I saw an image of Ames's work Amanda Clayanna Armstrong online, there was no doubt in my mind that

New Facts to Light

OVIVIAN LEAVER-HAUSCHULZ

the piece in our collection was carved by the same artist. Questions then arose: Who was the girl depicted in our carving, and how had she arrived at the foot ofthe Rocky Mountains ofColorado from New York,the state where Ames was known to have lived?

Westward Migration The original deed of gift for the sculpture indicated the piece had been donated to the Boulder History Museum by Mrs. Arch Hogue Sr. on May 18, 1963. The description simply stated,"Wood carving of mother-in-law of Mrs. Hogue— carved by her uncle in 1849—when she was 3 years old. Presented by her daughter-in-law Mrs. Arch Hogue." I was skeptical of the "uncle" part and figured that since Ames was known by scholars to live with his subjects while he carved their likenesses, it was possible that "uncle" was used as a term of endearment rather than of familial relation.' My skepticism disappeared when a mortuary record for Arch Hogue Sr. identified his mother as Susan Ames.This was a good start, but I had to verify whether the donor's mother-in-law was even from the state ofNew York.

While conducting his research,Jack Ericson located the only known census record of Asa Ames, who was listed in 1850 as residing in the household of a Dr. Harvey Marvin and his family, in Evans, Erie County, New York.3 In order to determine that Susan Ames was from New York, I looked to the same 1850 federal census and found a Henry G. Ames, age 28, recorded as the head of his household. Additional residents

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included Tryphina, age 24, Susan,age 2, and Susan Babcock, said she was descended from the same family.' Her records age 59. I wondered at the time whether Susan Babcock was indicated that Henry's parents were John Ames and Susan Henry's mother or mother-in-law. Either way, it seemed the Gates, and his siblings were listed as Emeline,John T,and more I discovered the more questions I had: Was this Susan Asa. Furthermore, the family was originally from MassachuAmes the subject of the sculpture? And, if so, how could I setts but had moved to New York before Henry and Asa were born. This living relative was a direct descendant of prove it?

Following the trail of information left by obituaries, cen- John T. Atnes.

How could I be sure that this was the artist's family? Two sus reports, and death and marriage records, I was able to confirm that sometime between 1852 and 1859 Susan Ames significant facts stood out from the descendant's original emoved with her family from Evans to Edgar County,Illinois, mail: Ma's mother's maiden name was Gates, and after her where she married Joe D. Hogue in 1864. Their son Arch husband John died, around 1830, she married a man whose was born in Shelbyville, Illinois, in 1869. In 1870 both the last name was Babcock Susan Ames Hogue's middle name Hogue family and the Henry G. Ames family moved to was listed as Gates on her death certificate. Moreover, Susan Sherman, Texas. Susan Ames Hogue died there in 1926. Gates Ames Babcock was most certainly the 59-year-old Arch and his wife, Laura, had moved to Boulder in 1919. Susan Babcock recorded as living with Henry Amesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;whom Whether they took the carving ofyoung Susan Ames Hogue we can now identify as Ma's brotherâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;in the 1850 census for with them then or acquired it after she died is unknown. Evans, New York She was his widowed mother. The conThus far I had managed to develop a fairly dear picture of nection was complete. Susan Ames Hogue is a carving of the that branch of the family tree but still had not made a link artist's niece. between Henry Ames and Ma Ames.

New Facts Come to Light Previously, there were few facts known about the life of Asa Making the Link The Internet, including genealogical research websites such Ames. He was born in New York in 1824 and died, probably as Ancestry.com, provided access to information that would oftuberculosis, in 1851. He lived, worked,and was buried in have taken years to compile in the pre-cyberspace era. One Evans, a town about twenty miles south of Buffalo. In of the most important breakthroughs I made was connecting researching the Susan Ames Hogue sculpture and making with a living relative ofAsa Ames.I had posted a message on contact with a living relative of Ames, new facts about the the Ames family website at Rootsweb.com requesting infor- artist's life have come to light.

Asa Ames had two older brothers and an older sister. At mation on Henry Ames from New York,and provided some dates. Months later, I received an e-mail from a woman who first glance this may not seem like an important discovery.

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This simple piece ofbiographical information, however, helps give new meaning to the artist's body ofwork. Although the subjects ofsome of Ames's sculptures have been identified, their relationship to the artist, if any, was previously unknown.

Ames's sister, Emeline, married Abner Dewey on November 17,1834.0 They had three children, Adelaide, Maria, and Millard. Ames carved a figure of Millard E Dewey in 1847,and by making the connection between the artist and his sister, Dewey can now also be identified as the artist's nephew. Furthermore,the figures attributed by Ericson as Maria and Adelaide Dewey can be identified as Millard's sisters and Ames's nieces.'

Additional links between the artist and his subjects can be made through the memorial to Sarah Reliance Ayer and Ann Augusta Ayer carved by Ames in 1850. The girls were 3 and 1, respectively, when they died in May 1849!

According to family tradition, Ames lived with the Ayers during the winter of 1849 to 1850. It is interesting to note that in the 1850 census for Evans, the household listed after the Abner and Emeline Dewey family is that of James and Mary (Hathaway Terry) Ayer, the parents of Sarah Reliance and Ann Augusta. Ames probably knew the Ayers because of their proximity to his sister's family, and the memorial may have been carved as a gift for grieving friends.

Another surprising discovery is that, according to family records, Ames was married to a woman named Emma shortly before his death in 1851.9 It is possible that the Emma he married is the Emma Hurd of the Marvin household listed just above Ames in the 1850 census. The relationship of Hurd to the Marvin family is unknown,but it is possible that she was a resident caretakerâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; if Ames was,indeed,staying at Dr. Marvin's for treatment oftuberculosis, as has

Asa Ames(1824-1851)is credited with at least thirteen figural carvings that were created between 1847 and 1851. Based upon inscriptions on many of the works, they appear to be specific portraits. Three-dimensional carving is an uncommon medium for this genre; typically, nineteenth-century portraiture was painted, and woodcarving was the domain of trade-figure and shipcarvers. Although we do not know the nature of Ames's training, one family with whom he resided remembered him as a seaman,suggesting, perhaps, that he may have learned to carve in a traditional shipcarving shop. The artist is highly regarded for his skill and his sensitive portrayals of young children, although he carved some adult figures as well. His work is characterized by the careful depiction of details of costume and drapery; the linear treatment of hair with repetitions of incised lines; the deep-set eyes with lashes painted as a series of dots; and the fully modeled ears.

Ames first came to public notice in the seminal exhibition "American Folk Sculpture: The Work of Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century Craftsmen," presented in 1931 at the Newark Museum, in New Jersey. At the time it was exhibited, Bust of a Girl [Maria Dewey] was thought to be one of three portraits of sisters, and the artist was incorrectly identified as Alexander Ames. It was not until 1977 that Jack T. Ericson located Asa Ames in the federal census of 1850 for Evans, Erie County, New York, in which Ames listed his PHRENOLOGICAL HEAD occupation as "sculpturing," and was living in Attributed to Asa Ames the household of Dr. Harvey Marvin. In 1847 the (1824-1851) artist may have been living with another physi- Evans, New York C. 1850 cian, Dr. Armstrong, when he carved the fullPaint on wood length figure of Amanda Clayanna Armstrong.

16% x 13 x 7Y8" Ames's most ambitious work, a memorial to American Folk Art Museum, Sarah Reliance Ayer and her sister, Ann bequest of Jeanette Virgin, Augusta, who both died in 1849, features a 1981.24.1 young girl, seated, with one arm around the lamb of Christ, and a salver, or small tray, in her other, outstretched hand. The carving was completed in 1850, the year in which Ames was living with Dr. Marvin in Evans. Marvin was a physician who was interested in alternative therapies, such as the "water cure," magnetism, and phrenology. Given this association, it is likely that the young artist carved the Phrenological Head in the American Folk Art Museum's permanent collection about this time, and was perhaps seeking a cure for "lung fever," or tuberculosis, a disease that was terminal in the age before antibiotics.

Ames was unsuccessful, and died in 1851 at the age of "twentyseven years, seven months, and seven days," as inscribed on his gravestone in the Evans Center Cemetery. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Stacy C. Hollander

SUMMER 2005 FOLK ART 55

Checklist of Known Works MILLARD F. DEWEY /1847/ private collection Millard F. Dewey was the artist's nephew.Inscription:Jan. 1847/ A.Ames. Illustrated in Jack T. Ericson,"Asa Ames,Sculptor," Magazine Antiques 122, no.3(September 1982): 526,pl. VI. MARIA DEWEY /1847 / present location unknown Maria Dewey was the artist's niece.This carving was exhibited in "American Folk Sculpture:The Work of Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century Craftsmen," at the Newark Museum,Newark,New Jersey,in 1931. Inscription: said to be signed by Ames and dated 1847.Illustrated in Jean Lipman, American Folk Art in Wood,Metal, and Stone(New York: Dover Publications, 1948), p. 185; Ericson, p.

524,fig. 1; and Stacy C. Hollander,"Asa Ames and the Art ofPhrenology," The Clarion 14,00.3(summer 1989): 32.

ADELAIDE DEWEY /1847 / Fitchburg Art Museum,Fitchburg, Massachusetts, gift of Milton Cushing,1930; destroyed in a fire in 1933 Adelaide Dewey was the artist's niece. Inscription: said to be inscribed by Ames with a location of Albany and dated 1847.

been suggested—or a servant. At the time of this printing, no marriage record has been found. Still, there are three Hurd family member graves surrounding the grave of Asa Ames, in Angola, Erie County, New York,suggesting that his wife and the resident in the Marvin household are one and the same.'° Census and family records indicate that, after Asa's death, Emma Ames moved west, to Traer, Iowa, with Asa's mother, his older brother John,and John's family,and that she lived with them until her death in 1893."

The bust of a young man attributed to Ames in the collection ofthe Huntington Museum of Art,in Huntington, West Virginia, was purchased by the

details of the artist's life and his subjects will be uncovered. In any case, by verifying the identity of the sculpture in the Boulder History Museum's collection as that of Susan Ames Hogue, new facts about Ma Ames's life have come to light, facts that help to flesh out the artist as a person.*

museum from an auction house in Marshalltown, Iowa, in 1978. It hardly seems a coincidence that Marshalltown is approximately thirty-five miles southwest of Traer, where Emma Ames and her brother-in-law John T Ames are buried. The subjects of at least four of Ames's sculptures have been positively identified as family members of the artist's. Therefore,it is not unlikely that the bust ofa young man in the collection of the Huntington Museum is either a depiction ofJohn T or, due to one due in particular, a self-portrait. An intriguing and unusual feature of the Huntington bust is the circular cutout on the figure's shirt. Family records state that Asa was honored for his woodcarving skills by the New York State Agricultural Society in 1848." Perhaps the cutout was meant to hold the medal he was awarded.

It certainly seems that in continuing to follow the same trail of genealogical leads, even more

1 Jack T. Ericson,"Asa Ames,Sculptor,"Antiques Magazine 122, no. 3(September 1982): 522-529.

2 Ibid., pp.525,526.

3 Ibid., p.523.

4 Carol Baumeister, e-mail to the author,January 7, 2004.

5 Ibid.

6 Buffalo Daily Star, November 20,1834.

7 The sculpture of Adelaide was lost in a fire at the Fitchburg Art Museum,Fitchburg, Mass.,in 1933. See Ericson, pp.523,527.

8 Ibid.

9 Baumeister,e-mail to the author,January 9,2004.

10 Kevin Enser,e-mail to the author, April 16,2004.

11 "Mrs. Emma Ames," Traer,[Iowa]Star-Clipper, April 28, 1893.

12 Baumeister,e-mail to the author, April 11,2004.

Corroborating the claim that Ames submitted pieces for competition is an entry on page 27 ofthe 1848 New York State Fair catalog, which states,"A. Ames,Evans— Carved likeness of General Taylor;figure small girl."

Laura Lee is the registrar and collection manager at the Boulder History Museum, in Colorado. She received her BA. in humanitiesfrom Northern Arizona University and her Master's in museum studiesfrom George Washington University. The author wishes to thankJack Ericson and Carol Baumeisterfor their encouragement and assistance with her research.

AMANDA CLAYANNA ARMSTRONG /1847 / private collection Family tradition has it that the artist was living with the family of Dr.Thomas and Joanna (Terry) Armstrong when he made this carving. Inscription: AMANDA C/ARIVISTRONG/BORN MAY/26/ 1844/BYA.AMES/NOV1847;illustrated in Ericson,p.526, pl. V. BUST OF A YOUNG MAN /1847 / New York State Historical Association, Cooperstown, gift of Stephen Clark Inscription:A.Ames March 1847;illustrated in Ericson, p. 522,pl. I. BUST OF A YOUNG MAN / c.1847-1851/ Huntington Art Museum, Huntington, West Virginia This may be a self-portrait or a portrait ofJohn T. Ames,the artist's brother.The Huntington Museum acquired the carving from an auction house in Iowa near the town where John Ames and Asa's widow,Emma,are buried. Illustrated in Ericson,p. 523,pl. III; and Hollander, p.52.

BUST OF A WOMAN / c.1847-1851/ collection of the Regis Corporation Illustrated in Ericson, p.524,fig. 3.

BUST OF A YOUNG WOMAN / c.1847-1851/ Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, Williamsburg, Virginia Illustrated in Ericson,p.522, pl.

GIRL HOLDING A BOOK / c.1847-1851/ private collection Inscription:A.Amer,illustrated in Ericson, p. 527, pl. VII. SUSAN AMES HOGUE /1849 / Boulder History Museum, gift of Mrs. Arch Hogue Sr., 8156.1 Susan Ames Hogue was the artist's niece. Inscription: CARVE)Dec., 1849. A.AME—.

NAKED CHILD /1849 / private collection Inscription: By A.Ames, Evans, NY.June 1849; illustrated in Ericson, p. 524,fig. 2.

MEMORIAL FOR SARAH RELIANCE AYER AND ANN AUGUSTA AYER /1850 / Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, Connecticut In the 1850 U.S. census,the James and Mary (Hathaway Terry) Ayer family is listed after the Dewey family. Inscription: By A.Ames. Carved APR 1850 illustrated in Ericson,p. 523,pl.IV;and Hollander,p. 34.

PHRENOLOGICAL HEAD / c.1850 / American Folk Art Museum, bequest of Jeanette Virgin, 1981.24.1 This carving was probably made when the artist was residing with Dr. Harvey Marvin,a physician who was interested in phrenology.

56 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

By Dan Nadel

COMIC BOOK AR-FIST In the middle of the last century, an unremarkable shipping clerk in Chicago named Frank Johnson quietly chronicled his own vision of American life in a series of comics created for his own entertainment.

Contained in twenty-eight skillfully drawn notebooks that begin in adolescence and end in old age, his work delineates a world of loyal friends, adventure, and surreal comedy. Its depth of feeling, accomplished cartooning, and private nature make it unique in both comic and folk art.

WALLY'S GANG, Book 118,1946 Frank Johnson (1912-1979) Chicago All works private collection. Photography by Tony Cenicola, courtesy Carl Hammer Gallery, Chicago.

1946

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58 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

Frank Johnson was born in Chicago on November 7, 1912. A self-taught artist and musician, he spent much of the 1930s and '40s as a blues and country guitar and harmonica player, performing on live radio all over the Midwest and South. Settling in Chicago in the '40s, he eventually became a shipping clerk for Denoyer and Geppert,a company that manufactured educational maps and globes. He held this job for the rest of his life, while avidly collecting old records and drawing comics. Frank met his future wife, Kay, at the Aragon Ballroom on Lawrence Avenue in 1966, and he married her two years later. They lived in a plain middle-class apartment in a three-story building on the North Side

UNTITLED / n.d. / pencil on paper / 5 8"

of Chicago until he succumbed to cancer in 1979. Frank and Kay Johnson did not have any children together, and Kay died in 2003. After Frank died, Kay discovered his notebooks, each containing between 60 and 120 pages of comics each, and a cigar box full of loose drawings. The earliest extant notebook, marked Book 90, is dated 1929,and the last,from 1978,is labeled Book 126. The notebooks tell three distinct stories: TheJuke Boys, a series of plotless slapstick comedies starring the two titular jokers; the down-and-out travails of a group of four hobos, The Bowser Boys; and Wally's Gang, the heartwarming chronicle of a group of all-American friends from youth to middle-age. Wally's Gang is the only continuing story of the three, compris-

ing twenty-five notebooks and more than one thousand pages of adventures drawn over a half-century span.

Frank Johnson's comics were a secret unbeknownst to Kay or anyone else, and there is no record of his having published any comics or even corresponding with any cartoonists. His life as a cartoonist is completely blank—most of what is known about him comes not from comics but from music, through his visits and correspondence with fellow 78-rpm record collectors in the 1970s. The secretive nature of Johnson's work brings up several questions about its status as comics, art, and, more germane to this article, outsider art. There is no known equivalent to Johnson's body of work in comics history. Unlike many other art forms, comics is a mass-produced medium made to be experienced by a large public. Artists tend to draw a comic for publication—it is rarely an end in itself. Only after a comic has been printed and bound can it be read, and only after it has been commercially distributed can it reach an audience. Furthermore, mastering the ability to write and draw a sustained and compelling narrative is extremely difficult, and using multiple genres and formal devices is even more so.

And beyond the creative difficulty of what he accomplished, when Johnson began drawing comics it was considered a purely commercial medium; personal, or "art" comics, like Krazy Kat,were anomalous at best. It was at least forty years before the idea of comics for art's sake would appear, not to mention the now-current graphic-novel format, which supports lengthy comic narratives.

It seems unlikely that Johnson ever intended to publish his work. His carefully shaded pencil drawings are unsuited for the cheap reproduction methods dominant in comics, and the stories, many more than one hundred pages long, are much too lengthy for a comic book industry that considered thirty-two pages an epic. His work was simply unpublishable. Instead of catering to the needs of publication, his notebooks are entirely selfcontained—the art is completely finished, titles pages are rendered, and notes to hypothetical readers are in place. The form in which they were made seems to be how Johnson

intended them to be read, begging the questions,Who was his audience? And where does one place a one-of-a-kind two-thousand-plus-page graphic novel? It exists outside of the usual comic historical narrative, which relies, as it must, on publication. And it also does not squarely fit with other outsider art, either, as its use of the comic medium is literal and selfconscious. Johnson did not have a visionary zeal to invent forms and worlds from nothing. Instead, he was simulating a medium—comics—and inventing a world within what he thought comics should be.

The central story in his work Wally's Gang is the tale of a group of friends who belong to "Wally's Gang," a men's club complete with clubhouse, official membership, and even a sweater emblazoned with a large W The comic follows the men through wars, marriages, deaths, and all of life's events. It is a mostly wholesome, wellintentioned vision of life blessedly unencumbered by adult problems. It seems more like a child's version of adulthood, a time when you have all day to hang out with your friends and nobody can tell you what to do. And, as with most comic strip artists of the time, Johnson plotted lengthy genrecrossing scenarios for his characters to enact, variously involving get-richquick schemes, home construction, hunting bears, succumbing to chicken pox, fighting in World War II, romancing numerous ladies, winning the lottery, playing sports, humoring freakish relatives, and, of course, the internal politics of the gang. And though the characters age and the years pass, the culture Johnson depicts seems perpetually stalled sometime before World War II—a nostalgist's paradise.The notebooks are filled with the kinds offeatures usually occupying a comic. Endnotes are included, such as 'Book 120 Comin' Up!" or "Best wishes from Wally's Gang. We'll see you in book 123. Also regards from our supporting cast below"; contests for readers are available; and even flashbacks for newcomers to the story are provided. All ofthese elements add up to the skeletal framework of a contemporary comic book.

The comics reflect a serious, almost didactic knowledge of the form and the medium, but not of its specific

SUMMER 2005

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59

content. Johnson was apparently free of any constraints about what could and couldn't be in a comic. One episode of Wally's Gang brings criminals to town,one ofwhom threatens to shoot Wally's wife "in the pelvic area" in order to paralyze her.The rest ofthe story, some forty pages long, is filled with murder and mayhem, all done in Johnson's friendly style. It features a character whose signature refrain is "I hate women." There was plenty of veiled sex and violence in the classic newspaper strips—Dick Tracy in particular verged on the grotesque in its 1940s heyday—but Johnson's awkward language and preoccupations stuck out even in that thorny landscape.

Johnson's two other titles, TheJuke Boys and The Bowser Boys, are two sides of the same creative coin.

Though they both consist ofa series of self-contained two-page comic strips, the first title is a happy-go-lucky cartoon romp, while the second is a darkly funny descent into urban hell.

TheJuke Boys("Our Motto: Long Live Ignorance") fills two mid-1940s notebooks with sight gags relying on visual and verbal puns as well as a hefty dose of surrealism. Each comic strip focuses on a trio of dimwits as they take pratfalls and clown around, and each comic obeys only Johnson's whims.

Backgrounds change, photographs talk to the characters, signs change from panel to panel. One episode features Blorist the Florist, whose sign at first reads "Try Wanzy's Pansies" and then, in the next panel,"Try Grysanthemums's Chrysanthemums." Meanwhile, the plants in the store change from sunflowers to cacti to roses. In another panel, a ladder appears and a "self rising flower" hastily ascends it.

Johnson also had the distinct advantage of not having to worry about ruled panels, so he delineated his borders with cartoon beards, sausages, or anything else within eyesight—a rare design conceit at the time. This kind of inspired lunacy was pioneered in comics by a cartoonist named Bill Holman, whose nonsensical Smokey Stover, a strip about firemen that ran from 1935 to 1973, employs some of the same formal elements. But Johnson took it a few steps further, bound not by worries of publication, deadlines, or format, but only by what he could draw.

60 SUMMER 2005

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There is only one book of The Bowser Boys,an amazingly graphic slapstick account of a group of drunks drinking, vomiting, and degrading themselves.WhereJuke Boys seems joyous—an attempt at free and happy play on the page—Bowser Boys is a dour, though funny,look at the drinking life.

Completed in 1948, its brutality is without precedent in the comics of the time, and it blindly foreshadows the down-and-dirty work of underground artists such as Robert Crumb. The Bowser Boys seems utterly unique in comic history: a pre-underground underground comic. Johnson's stepson, Don Dougherty (Kay's son from a previous marriage), has speculated that Johnson was a severe alcoholic in the late 1940s and through the 1950s (coinciding with a gap in his comic work), before becoming a sober and devoted member of Alcoholics Anonymous from the late 1950s until his death. Perhaps his excursion with The Bowser Boys reflects this dark turn in his life. If so, it is a rarity in a life primarily dedicated to creating and collecting in tandem. With sobriety, Johnson devoted himself to his collecting and to producing a series of notebooks in the early 1960s, but he otherwise spent his spare time cataloging,researching,and record hunting.

Collecting was possibly as important to Johnson as drawing. Both were ways to document himself and revisit his youth. His collections were as carefully and exactingly assembled as his comics, the same zeal brought to the task of cataloging as to the act of drawing. He left behind two threering binders filled with typed lists of his records, annotated discographies, radio playlists from the late 1930s, transcribed articles, song lyrics, and numerous lists of records by category ("Songs About Food,""Songs by Blind Men," etc.). Johnson's tastes were omnivorous: He embraced blues, country, topical songs, and even guitar instrumentals, some popular and some obscure even to the most ardent scholars. Played first on front porches, at town dances, or even in the fields, these songs of mistreated women, unhappy men,jolly hobos, beautiful "darlings," and lonely roads are the organic stuff of American life and legend. Johnson's music, like his comics, was a part of the American rural and

urban milieu—both were as natural as a conversation with a good friend.

As a collector,Johnson prowled the South Side's Maxwell Street in the 1960s and '70s in search of records, and on occasion he would take the allnight bus to a Jackson, Mississippi,flea market, maybe returning with a Charlie Patton record, barely audible through the scratches and surface damage. His notebooks list his favorite record-collecting towns, places that nurtured the rural music he loved and were only a bus ride away, including Helena, Arkansas; Glasgow, Kentucky; and Canton, Mississippi. According to fellow collector Sherwin Dunner, the condition of the records didn't matter: He would play them on a child's plas-

THE BOWSER BOYS, 1948

tic phonograph. Dunner described the effect as "vaguely mystical," noting that, for Johnson, the records were a "symbolic thing with the power of the originals." Johnson wasn't interested in pristine sound quality, he just needed an intimation of the past—a hint of what once was. Unlike most of his fellow collectors, Johnson lived through—played through—the very period he collected. He was,in a sense, collecting his own history. For Johnson, the true originals were not the records,but the very songs themselves.

He performed those songs at radio stations across the Midwest, some original and some traditional,including

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versions of the classic American folk before stopping again until just before then-current style, too. In most comics, songs "John Henry" and "Stagger Lee." his death. Johnson's drawing style var- every effort is made to disguise stylistic In the 1930s, men like Johnson might ied and progressed throughout his life. changes and to invest the characters have provided an afternoon's entertain- Ranging from his 1928 teenage with lives of their own,independent of ment on a rural or urban radio station. scratchings to the exactingly rendered the creator. But Johnson was conscious He would have shown up at the sta- pencil works of the early 1960s,John- enough ofthe status of his work to realtion, auditioned, and been given a slot son's drawings are unnervingly intense ize that it was inseparable from himself; to perform his tunes live on the air. and impressed with a heavy hand. His and that the "memories" were really just Some stations, like WHAS in cartooning style throughout his life his own drawings, a bit older and a bit Louisville, Kentucky, and WED in appears based upon the prevailing look cruder, so why hide it? Toward the end Chicago,seem to have hosted him for a of 1920s comic strips, but it is distin- of the same story, Wally faces the week or even a month at a time. At guished by his own idiosyncratic ren- reader, and his speech balloon reads: WHAS Johnson performed originals dering methods. The early work is "The guy that draws Wally's Gang like "Oh Razbo," "Happy Yodeling made up of mostly loose pencil-line must sure like us guys! After thirty-five Hobo," and "My Troubles Go On," drawings, with the exception of the years, here we are! To him, we're like phrases that seem pulled from the dark pen and ink of The Bowser Boys. living persons! Sometimes he has to atmosphere of the Depression-era Gradually, however, the drawings con- stop to realize that we only exist on Midwest and probably evaporated just strict and become fully rendered. The paper. An'he wonders what we're gonna as quiddy as he sang them. Along the panels fill up with tiny pencil marks. do next, when it's really all up to him!" way, Johnson likely crossed paths with There is marked improvement in his His pal George replies,"He never could fellow anonymous songsters as well as skill. His efforts are more sustained draw hands an' feet." To which Wally more famous names, too. His notes and increasingly consistent in the early replies,"He don't really care! He'll never indicate that he may have recorded 1960s, and his pages are full of over- be an artist, but we're dedicating this with some of them, including country shaded objects, cross-hatching of all page to him anyway! After all,if he didsingers Doc Hopkins and Hank Snow, kinds, and a close attention to detail. n't draw us, who would?" It's a touching in addition to making his own solo This was his final major style—car- speech, and one that reveals the full recordings, none of which were ever tooning that verges on the over- extent of Johnson's investment in his commercially released and are now pre- rendered.While most cartooning seeks lifelong friends and creations. Never sumed lost. Also among his papers is a to simplify, leaving the reader to fill in have comic characters paid such tribute binder marked Book 18, containing details and discover some mysteries to their creator. two hundred pages ofsong lyrics, some herself, Johnson's late work leaves Wally's tribute speaks to Johnson's traditional and some original. Standard nothing to chance. Wally's world is a dedication, modesty, and privacy. If he Records, in Nashville, released a single fully realized urban place, its characters was really"an artist" maybe he'd be pubco-written by Johnson and Nashville highly individual and, scene by scene, lished, but he loves his gang, and, star Zeke Clements and sung by Zoro painstakingly rendered. Johnson's final through a tumultuous life, never forgot Williams. The date of release is diffi- notebook, Book 126, drawn after a them. Johnson used the stuff of the cult to pinpoint, though judging by its fifteen-year break, finds Wally and everyday—a group of pals, some horsthick, generic Nashville sound the early friends wondering how it could be ing around,and the passage oftime—to 1960s is a safe assumption. What 1978 and why their creator had for- create a lengthy narrative of his Ameribecame of the rest of his songs, and saken them for so many years. The can experience. It's a unique achievewhether they were ever published or drawing,once so disciplined and full, is ment. The closest equivalent might be performed, is yet another mystery. In here loose and arthritic. Johnson died the discovery of dozens of solo jazz the late 1940s the trail goes cold, and a less than a year later. recordings by an accomplished musician Perhaps acknowledging the lone- done just for his private entertainment, dark gap opens up in the 1950s,only to be bridged in 1961 with Johnson's some nature of writing and drawing, showing a full comprehension of multireturn to comics, and, presumably, his Johnson occasionally broke the "fourth ple jazz styles, such as bebop, swing, co-writing credit for Zoro Williams. wall," often speaking to his "readers," or, and boogie-woogie. Like the musician Johnson's musical and artistic out- as in his last notebook, having his cre- he was, Johnson took a familiar tune put was clearly sporadic. His alco- ations speak about Johnson himself. and breathed his own life into it, in the holism and perhaps other factors Other cartoonists of the time did the process creating something new, premeant that he produced in short, same, but with a nudge and a wink cious,and alive.* intense spurts bookended by years of toward their readers. For Johnson, it inactivity. Nevertheless, his comics was more personaL Book 121, finished Dan Nadel, a NewYork-based writer and continuously improved with each in 1960 to 1961, features a lengthy editor, is the director ofthe Grammy awardbook. His most fertile period of draw- reunion story in which all of the Wally's winningstudio andpublishing house Pictureing was in the 1930s and '40s, perhaps Gang characters past and present attend Box. His recentprojects include The Wilco because he needed to pass time while a thirty-fifth anniversary party for the Book and thefturth issue ofhis visualculture on the road. The 1950s are blank, but gang itself When they recall an adven- anthology,The Ganzfeld. His book The then between 1960 and '63 he pro- ture from 1925,it is drawn in Johnson's Underground That Wasn't An Anthology duced five notebooks of comics total- teenage style, and a remembered adven- ofUnknown Comic Visionaries, 1900-1970 ing more than five hundred pages, ture from the '30s is drawn in Johnson's comes out nextyearfrom Harry N.Abrams.

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Membership includes unlimited free admission to the museum, an annual subscription to Folk Art magazine, and a 10 percent discount at the museum's Book and Gift Shop.

Patron Membership starts at $150 and benefits include a host of special events and programming. Please contact the membership office at 212. 977. 7170, ext. 346, or membership@folkartmuseum.org for more details!

UNCLE SAM RIDING A BICYCLE WHIRLIGIG (detail) / artist unidentified / probably New York State / c.1880-1920 / paint on wood with metal / American Folk Art Museum, promised bequest of Dorothea and Leo Rabkin, P2.1981.6 / Photo: John Parnell, New York

64 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

Senior/Student $50 $40 Sale Price Individual Sale Price

$65 $55

Dual/Family Sale Price

$85 $75

AMERICAN

0 MUSEUM

ALL AMERICAN ALL in the Berkshires this season

What do James Taylor, The New Yorker, Edith ,â&#x20AC;˘.10ffenel Wharton,vintage film, flags and quilts, Frederic Remington, and Savion Glover all have in common?

They're ALL AMERICAN and,from May through October,they're ALL waiting for you in the Berkshires, America's Premier Cultural Resort. For more info call the Berkshire Visitors Bureau toll free 866-444-4021 or for a complete listing of events visit www.berkshiresarts.org.

NEW Z11.11Eii

&p ,.R...

AME ICAN theBITkIpNS TRIin Matthew J. Amorello, Chairman Massachusetts Turnpike Authority wvvvv.masspike.com Photos: Savion Glover. Len Inst. Photo of flag courtesy of], Richard Pierce; James Taylor; Cover for The New Yorker by Mare Kalman, copyright gi)11 996"The New Yorker" and Maim Kalman; Edith \Nharton at the Mount. Lenox. MA:Wedding album quilt. Mary Nevius Potter and others, Pottersville, New Jersey. c. 1864. Girl in Yellow Dress with Doll attributed to Erastus Salisbury Field, circa 1838. Fenimore Art Museum: Frederic Remington, Cowboy.ca. 1890, Private Collection

866-444-4021

www.berkshiresarts.org

UPDATE:

THE

HENRY

DA

R

GER

STUDY

CENTER

BY BROOKE DAVIS ANDERSON

Jessica Yu is an Academy Award -winning filmmaker based in Los Angeles. Her most recent project, In the Realms of the Unreal: The Mystery of Henry Darger, a feature-length documentary produced with a team of animators, was released in 2004.1 had the pleasure of discussing the film and the artist with Jessica in fall 2004.

BDA How did you learn about the work of Henry Darger? JY The "Parallel Visions"[1992] show at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. I don't normally seek out outsider art, but I remember his work distinctly. The subject matter was so perverse, yet presented so innocently, without irony. It was a combination ofsensibilities I hadn't encountered before. BDA Could you talk about the absence ofthe first voice in your film?

JY The challenge ofdoing this as a film at all was that the primary voice was unavailable— Darger died in 1973.Years after "Parallel Visions,"I met Kiyoko [Lerner,who,with her late husband, Nathan Lerner, brought Darger's work to the attention of the artworld] quite by accident, and she showed me the entire collection of material: the novel, the journals, the hundreds ofpaintings. I got a sense of Darger's incredible ambition—it wasn't just the paintings, it was the entire world he had created.I thought there might be a rich story for a film, but it was a challenge, considering Darger's isolation and the lack ofa visual record of his life. He had no family and was quite invisible in the world.

We had a mountain of artwork, ephemera, and other material to explore his imaginative life but so little to tell us about his existence in the real world. Every answer seemed to lead to more questions.

I realized that the film needed to embrace the mystery of this person,that there is a statement in

66 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

the enigmatic quality of his life.

The film also aims to celebrate what was created by Darger—the beauty and strangeness. Made in spite of what was a sad life in many ways. BDA A sad life? JY In a lot of ways Darger's life was sad.

But when I met Mary O'Donnell, a neighbor of Darger's, her testimony was important. She knew Darger when he was in his 50s, more in his prime,and she saw him as a content man. No one bothered him and that was fine with him.What I know now, obviously some things happened that were tragic, but the sum of things in his life had,like anyone's, a spectrum of highs and lows, ofcomplexity. BDA Could you talk about your idea to employ animation in the documentary? JY It came about organically.I was constantly amazed at how Darger kept trying to bring in so many elements into his paintings.They are the elements ofa film, and it seemed natural to bring them together to tell the story of his fiction. I was aware oftaking liberties, but the intention ofthe film is not to be an analytical, traditional biographical documentary;I wanted the film to be more of an imaginative experience and,if successful, an emotional one. So, the animation is more about the film. Luckily Darger's paintings contain so much action,so much movement, that it doesn't take great leaps to connect the dots to figure out what the action should be.

Darger's world is complex and

alienating in its strangeness, but many of his themes are universal.

As we begin to appreciate what these themes are and where they came from,the animation helps draw us into this other realm and navigate within it. BDA No talking heads? That was an interesting decision. JY That's right—no talking heads. No experts, no art historians or psychoanalysts.I decided on this pretty early. There is so much speculation about Darger's life, his art, his intentions, and his motivations, and everyone has an opinion. But who is an authority? Our responses to Darger's writing and paintings say so much about ourselves, really.

Once you embrace the mystery, the many opinions seem less compelling. I wanted my audience to decide for themselves.I feel very protective ofthe mystery,I want to preserve that. BDA What kind of person do you think he was?

JY Well,if he and I had ever had a conversation, it would have been about the weather! I imagine that—at least when he was healthy enough to paint—he was determined, proud,a controller of the world,the master of his universe. If you are an artist and you are creating something and you are in control of your art, that can be enough. At the same time he was self-aware enough to know the limits of his fantasy world. He was aware of his art; he couldn't completely lose himselfin it. He still had to go to work. He still had longings for companionship late in life, as evidenced by his desire to adopt a dog. Which, sadly, he could not afford. BDA Why do you think he wrote and made art? JY I do think that all art is in some way an attempt to make an alternative world. And the alternative universe Henry Darger made was really where he lived. It was more than an escape;

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he was trying to make it as rich and fulfilling a place as the outside world. He did not want to have to rely on others. And that was the question that haunted me through the five years of making the film.I wanted to know: Was it enough? Can a person live a fulfilling life in a world created out of his own mind? With any person,the answer to this question isn't black or white, but with Darger,it's a hundred shades of gray.* In the Realms ofthe Unrealwill air on "P.O.V.," on PBS,on August 2 at 10:00 PM EST(check local listings).

Brooke Davis Anderson recently lectured on Henry Darger at the Auckland Art Gallery, in New Zealand, during the run of "Mixed-Up Childhood" (Feb. 25-May 29, 2005).

The American Folk Art Museum loaned three works

by Darger to the exhibition.

Three of the museum's Darger holdings also traveled to England this spring.

"Only Make-Believe: Ways of Playing" will be on view at Compton Verny in Warwickshire through June 5.

A Great Southern Tradition Continues at the 12th Annual

FOLK FEST Atlanta, GA â&#x20AC;˘ August 19-21, 2005

Self-Taught Art Southern Folk Pottery

Folk Fest

Anonymous & Antique Folk Art New Discoveries African-Am. Decorative Arts

North Atlanta Trade Center 1-85 & Indian Tr. Rd. Exit 101 Friday: 5-10pm - $15 Show Opening - Includes FREE T-shirt Saturday: 10am-7pm - $7 Sunday: 10am-5pm - $7

80 Exhibitors Information: Folk Fest, Inc. 770 932-1000 Email: folkfest@bellsouth.net Website: www.slotinfolkart.com

MUSEUM

REPR

ODUCTIONS

PROGRAM

BY ALICE J. HOFFMAN

FOLK ART

Representing more than 300years ofAmerican design,from the late 1600s to thepresent, the American Folk Art Museum CollectionTM brings within reach ofthepublic the very best ofthepast to be enjoyedfor generations to come.

COLLECTION

New Directions * Museum Store Products Magnetized! Museum Store Products,one ofthe country's most highly acclaimed manufacturers ofcustom products for museums nationwide, has created a line of magnets featuring traditional and contemporary folk art masterpieces. Magnets come in square or rectangular shapes and as a mini set, complete with eight separate magnets housed in a plastic box. Look for Dog by Bill Traylor, New Jerusalem by Sister Gertrude Morgan, CowJump Over the Mone by Nellie Mae Rowe, Three Faces in Lush Landscape by Minnie Evans, Sunrise by John "Jack" Savitslcy, Tree ofLight or Blazing Tree Oift Drawing by Hannah Cohoon,and Bird of Paradise Quilt Top and Heartand-Hand Love Token by unidentified artists. Choose more than one to create your own mini exhibition for the kitchen or office.

News from Museum Licensees Share our legacy;look for new products from our family of licensees,featuring unique designs inspired by objects from the museum's collection. *Galison So Noted! Galison Portfolio Notes featuring four exquisite nesting birds from the museum's Bird ofParadise Quilt Top sold out the first week the note cards were available in the museum's Book and Gift Shop.

68 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

We're happy to report we've received a new shipment.The artfully packaged portfolio includes four distinct images,12 note cards, and 12 envelopes.

Visit our shop or contact Galison for a store near you.

Angel Gabriel and Devil nutcrackers from Mary Myers Studio

* Mary Myers Studio We're Nuts! Mary Myers continues to create wonderful,whimsical nutcrackers inspired by objects in the museum's permanent collection.

Mary Myers has created more than 20 limited-edition nutcrackers since becoming a museum licensee in 1996. Each nutcracker is signed and numbered. Please let us know how many you have.

To purchase a nutcracker or to find a store near you,contact the Mary Myers Studio at 757/4811760.

Dear Customer Your purchase of museumlicensed products directly benefits the exhibition and educational activities of the museum.Thank you for participating in the museum's continuing efforts to celebrate the style, craft, and tradition of American folk art. If you have any questions or comments regarding the American Folk Art Museum CollectionTm, please contact us at 212/9777170,ext. 312.

Galison Bird of Paradise Quilt Top Portfolio Notes

Family of Licensees Andover Fabrics(212/760-0300) printed fabric by the yard and prepackaged fabric craft kits. Chronicle Books(800/722-6657) note cards.* Fotofolio(212/226-0923) art postcard books and boxed note cards.' FUNQuilts(708/445-1817)limited-edition quilt collection.' Galison (212/354-8840) portfolio and boxed note cards and jigsaw puzzle.'

LEAVES Pure Teas(877/532-8378)loose tea in decorative tins.' MANI-G'Raps (800/510-7277) decorative gift wrap and coordinating accessories.' Mary Myers Studio (757/481-1760) wooden nutcrackers, tree ornaments,and table toppers.'Museum Store Products(800/966-7040) magnets, mini jigsaw puzzle.'On the Wall Productions,Inc. (800/788-4044) Magic Cubes.'Ozone Design,Inc.(212/563-2990) socks.'Pfaltzgraff (800/999-2811) By Request- The America Collection"' dinnerware. Takashimaya Company,Ltd.(212/350-0550) home furnishings and decorative accessories (available only in Japan).

'Available in the American Folk Art Museum Book and Gift Shop.

SALLIE GIORDANO FOR LETA AUSTIN ROSTER & ASSOCIATES. eimage/dennis krukowski

Stephen T. Anderson offers the finest heirloom-quality handhooked rugs made in America today. Since 1985 Stephen has taken hand hooked rug making, one of America's only indigenous folk arts and moved it into the forefront of modern design.

Clients are offered the highest level of customization.

Each rug is designed for the individual buyer. Patterns may be chosen from Stephen's extensive repertoire of designs or clients may create their own unique rug design.

Each rug is prepared from wool fabrics hand hooked into a linen base in Stephen's NYC studio. Offering the advantages of custom sizing, from the quite small to the renowned

mansion size," each rug possesses the nuances of coloration and textural subtleties usually found only in antiques.

Self taught as a restorer of hooked rugs, Stephen gained his first critical acclaim in 1983, when his expert craftsmanship garnered him the title of"the most respected hooked rug restorer in New York" by The New York Times.

Leading designers, architects and collectors from around the world have commissioned Stephen's work. In addition to being featured in some of the worlds finest homes, his work has appeared in the pages of Architectural Digest, House Beautifid, House and Garden, Town and Country, Forbes FYI, The New York Times and on CNN.

BY APPOINTMENT STEPHEN T. ANDERSON LT,: 1071 FIRST AVE. NEW YORK, NY 10022 PHONE 212.319.0815 FAX 212.980.5453 www.customhookedrugs.com

UPDATE:

THE

SHIRLEY

K

SCHLAFER

LIBRARY

BY JAMES MITCHELL 5664561145

1.1111tART(X )1‘,1 Nomxd View

he museum's Shirley K. Schafer Library catalog is now available for searching via the museum's website. More than 8,000 records representing the entire book collection have been converted from the card catalog and loaded into an Internetaccessible database using Caspr Library Systems'LibraryCom service. All records can be searched by author, title, and subject, with advanced features available for combining multiple fields.

The conversion project was funded by a grant from the Metropolitan New York Library Council(METRO),which dispenses state funds to libraries and

T

educational institutions in the region.In addition to these book records,the library's entire collection of more than 200 videotapes and DVDs has also been cataloged in the database. Records for other collections,including auction catalogs, vertical files, and museum archives, will soon be added.

This project is the second major step in the museum's plan to upgrade its library facilities and services. After moving into a climate-controlled space in the new building on West 53rd Street in early 2002,the library has improved the cataloging and accessibility ofthe collections for

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Anaebrie Boll-Vhrea /'Mark-Caroline Nainsaulleu. alerie 00i1-3 LCC61:.

ISBN Number Library of Congress Call Number Main Entry-Personal Name: Tole Statement Pubberson Dun-Mutton Dam Physical DeunpUon: Bibliography, Mc. NW: Formailed Notes: Language Note: Subject-Personal Name: Subject-Topical TOM: Added Envy - Personal Name: Added Entrs - Personal Name: Nur Bar Code Number 235

Branch

2003580295 172911480719. II N0553B5853 A4 2003 Boix-Vives. Asia.. 1899-1969.

Anulme Boix-V Ives 'IMane-Caroline Sainsaulicu. Valene Pais( Editions dais Diffherice,02003v. <1 > cot .3200u Inchades bibliographical references(v. I. R 533-535)and index. v. I. 1962-1964 : monographic = monograph : catalogue reisonne.

French and English.

Bole-Veins Ansel.. 1899-1969 — Catalogues raisonnes.

Outsider ast—Franec—Carslogi Sainsaulicu. Maric-Carohne.

Bose-Vices. Valerie.

Purchased through the generous support of Me Ida and William Rosenthal Foundation.

LOCS1100

the use of members and the general public. Announcements of additional software enhancements and digital-imaging initiatives will follow.

The catalog can be accessed on the museum's website,

Sums IN

Call Number NO55335)153

vvww.folkartmuseum.org; click on Information,and then Library.

For more information,contact James Mitchell,librarian, at 212/265-1040,ext. 110,or jmitchell@folkartmuseum.org.

Recent Gifts — New Purchases Cerejido, Elizabeth. Lespri Hammer,Carl,et al. Lee Endepandan:Discovering Godie:French Impressionism Haitian Sculpture. Miami: from a Bag. Chicago: Carl Patricia and Phillip Frost Hammer Gallery,2004.

Art Museum at Florida Gift ofthe CarlHammer International University, Gallery.

2004. Gift ofReynald Lally.

Klein, Richard. Bottle: ConColon Camacho,Doreen temporary Art and VernacuM.(ed.).Los Santos de lar Tradition. Ridgefield, Puerto Rico:Estudio de la Conn.: Aldrich ContempoImagineria Popular. San rary Art Museum,2004.

Juan: Instituto de Cultura Gift ofthe Aldrich ContemPuertorriquefia,2003. Gift porary Art Museum. ofthe author.

Lambert,Miss. The HandBook ofNeedlework. New Feilacher,Johann (ed.).

Sovciren. Das Haus der Kt-ta- York Wiley and Putnam, stier in Gugging. Heidel1842. Gift ofDeborah berg: Edition Braus,2004. Harding.

Gift ofthe Gugging Haus der Kfinstler, Austria.

Levinson,Dnmell."A Descriptive Study of Art at Friedrich Schroderthe Margins:The Work of Sonnenstern. Hamburg, Jennifer Kotter, Ray MaterGermany: Galerie Brockst- son,and Bonnie Peterson." edt, 1973. Gift ofthe Galerie Ph.D. diss. New York UniBrockstedt. versity,2001. Gift ofthe author.

70 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

Matuszak,Thomas (ed.).

Leben im &den = Life in the South:Self-TaughtArtists from the Huffman Collection, Hickory, North Carolina.

Altenburg, Germany: Lindenau-Museum Altenburg, 2004. Gift ofthe LindenauMuseum Altenburg.

Rivers, Cheryl (ed.). Donald Mitchell.Right Here Right Now. Oakland, Calif: Creative Growth Art Center, 2004. Gift ofthe author.

The museum thanks the Ida and William Rosenthal Foundation for its generous support over the past two years. Its major contributions have funded the library's purchase of more than 150 books so far.

Recent highlights include:

Boix-Vives, Valerie, and Marie-Caroline Sainsaulieu. Arzselme Boix-Vives: monographie;catalogue raisonne, vol. 1. Paris: Editions de la Difference, Ross, Nan Thayer. Purple on 2003.

Silk:A Shaker Eldress and Her DyeJournal. New Earnest, Corinne and Gloucester, Maine: United Russell. To the Latest PosterSociety of Shakers,2003. ity:Pennsylvania-German Family Registers in the FrakGift ofGerard C. Wertkin. tur Tradition. Publications Wheeler,Candace. The of the Pennsylvania GerDevelopment ofEmbroidery man Society, vol. 37. Uniin America. New York and versity Park Pennsylvania London: Harper and Bros., State University Press, 1921. Gift ofDeborah 2004.

Harding.

Guess, Virginia Ann. Spirit ofChiapas: The Expressive Art ofthe RoofCross Tradition. Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Press,2004.

Kimball,Jane A. Trench Art:an Illustrated History.

Davis, Calif: Silverpenny Press,2004.

Nielson, Carol Holindrake.

The Salt Lake City 14th WardAlbum Quilt, 1857.

Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press,2004.

Stewart,Jim. The County Decoys: The Fine Old Decoys ofPrince Edward County, Ontario. Erin, Ontario: Boston Mills Press,2004.*

CONANCTICUI' Barbara Ardizone Bartley Antiques, LLC Kirtland H. Crump Wayne & Phyllis Hilt Stephen & Carol Huber Allan & Penny Katz Bettina Krainin Nathan Liverant and Son Oriental Rugs, LTD Thomas Schwenke, Inc. Lewis W. Scranton Jeffrey Tillou Antiques DELAWARE James l. Kilvington MUNE David C. Morey PEANSIZVANLI Jeff R. Bridgman H.L. Chalfant M. Finkel & Daughter Olde Hope Antiques, Inc. William & Teresa Kurau The Philadelphia Print Shop, Ltd Raccoon Creek at Oley Forge Christopher T. Rebollo Elle Shushan Van Tassel-Baumann American Antiques Jan Whitlock Melinda & Laszlo Zongor ILLINOIS Taylor B. Williams, LLC 117YWYORK Artemis Gallery S. Scott Powers Antiques John Keith Russell Antiques, Inc. Jonathan Trace OHIO Samuel Forsythe/David Good Gary & Martha Ludlow

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8TH, 11AM - 6PM SUNDAY, OCTOBER 9TH, 11AM - 5PM

SPECIAL ENT A FORUM ON "PAINTED FUfNlTURF,4MPERSoNATJON AND TECHNIQUE" will be presented at Historic Deerfield on Saturday. October 8" at 3pm

For more information: Telephone: 413-775-7177 www.adadealers.com

ASVHAMPSHIRE Hollis E. Brodrick Sharon Platt Peter Sawyer Cheryl & Paul Scott George & Debbie Spiecker MASSACHUSETTS Pam & Martha Boynton Joan R. Brownstein Suzanne Courcierâ&#x20AC;˘ Robert W. Wilkins Brian Cullity Paul DeCoste Colette Donovan Peter H. Eaton Antiques, Inc. Stephen H. Garner Samuel Herrup John Hunt Marshall Elliott & Grace Snyder PERNOIV7' Stephen-Douglas WRCIAZ4 Sumpter Priddy III

QUILT

CONNECTION

COMPILED BY CHRISTINE CORCORAN AND DANA CLAIR; WITH TEXT BY STACY C. HOLLANDER

have a mind to quilt," Leola Pettway has been quoted as saying. Pettway was born into a family of quiltmakers from the insular African American community of Gee's Bend. An isolated, U-shaped peninsula encircled by the Alabama River, the area is named after Joseph Gee,a white settler and slaveholder who staked a claim there about 1816. By the mid-19th century, ownership of his plantation had been transferred to Mark Pettway, and the two slave populationsjoined together.

Most"Benders"today are descended from these two slave groups,who all took the name Pettway. Gee's Bend has witnessed four generations ofquiltmakers, whose geographical seclusion and cultural continuity have given rise to a strong and unique lineage of quiltmaking traditions.

I

Recently the powerful abstract artistry of Gee's Bend quilts were highlighted in the traveling exhibition"The Quilts of Gee's Bend," initially presented at the Whitney Museum ofAmerican Art,in New York(and on view this summer in Boston; see page 73). Gee's Bend quilts first came to widespread attention during the 1960s, however,when the Martin Luther King Freedom Quilting Bee was established; Leola Pettway belonged to this quiltmaking collective for many years.

The quilts made under the auspices ofthe Freedom Quilting Bee were sold throughout the United States, available through decorators and ultimately made to order for Bloomingdale's department store. In the 1970s,interest in the Freedom Quilting Bee was revived when an initiative sponsored by Sears, Roebuck &Company pro-

LOG CABIN QUILT, COURTHOUSE STEPS VARIATION!Plummer T Pettway (b. 1918)/ Boykin, Alabama / 1991 / cotton and synthetics / 711 / 2> 72W,i" / American Folk Art Museum, gift of Helen and Robert Cargo, 1991.33.1

72 SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

STAR OF BETHLEHEM WITH SATELLITE STARS QUILT / Leola Pettway (b.1929)! Boykin, Alabama / 1991 / cotton and synthetics /102 x 93/ 1 2 "/ American Folk Art Museum purchase made possible in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, with matching funds from the Great American Quilt Festival 3,1991.13.4

This quilt is on view in Wncestry andInnovation."

vided the quiltmakers with fine corduroys in saturated colors with which to make pillow shams.The sale of quilts made through the collective benefited the women of Gee's Bend.The consistency required for mass production influenced the patterns and aesthetic individuality ofthe quilts, distinguishing them from quilts the women made for their own use. Pettway's Star ofBethlehem with Satellite Stars Quilt scintillates with eye-dazzling color and improvisational riffs on this traditional pattern.In Pettway's hands the star becomes a pulsating nova anchored in the four corners of the heavens by satellite stars.In Log Cabin Quilt, Courthouse Steps Variation, another Bender,Plummer T Pettway, exploits the inherent interest in a traditional pattern, Log Cabin,through explosive scale and unpredictable colors.

The museum's collection of quilts by African American artists was formed primarily in the early

1990s.This was a period ofburgeoning interest in many aspects of African American life and culture,and particularly in the identification ofAfrican retentions in the material culture emerging from black communities.In quilt scholarship,folklorists and art historians, notably Maude Southwell Wahlman,posited that such retentions were encoded into the very patterns, color choices, and other aesthetic decisions made by African American quiltmakers, especially in the rural South.The exciting idea that such direct relationships could be quantified led to an intense focus on certain characteristics in quilts that Wahlman recognized as related to ancestral textile traditions from Africa.The contemporary quilts assembled for the museum's collection specifically exhibited these traits. And within this defined group ofvisually exciting quilts, those made by women in the geographically remote region of Gee's Bend hold a special place.*

Quilt and Textile Events and Exhibitions COMPILED BY ELEANOR BERMAN

Call for Entries Uncoverings 2006:Research Papers ofthe American Quilt Study Group, vol. 26 Submission deadline:July 1,2005 American Quilt Study Group P.O. Box 4737 Lincoln, NE 68504-0737 402/472-5361; www.h-net.org/-aqsg

Washington, D.C. The Textile Museum Textiles for This World and Beyond:Treasures from Insular Southeast Asia Through Sept. 18,2005 Huari CeremonialTextiles July 1,2005-Jan.8,2006 202/667-0441; wwvv.textilemuseum.org

Toronto, Canada Textile Museum of Canada Fassett! Quilts by Kaffe Fassett June 1-Oct. 16,2005 416/599-5321; vvww.textilemuseum.ca

Paducah, Ky. Museum of the American Qiilter's Society My Soul Is Fed with Needle and Thread:Quilts byJane Blair Through July 10,2005 Contemporary Quilts from Australia June 18-Sept. 18,2005 270/442-8856; www.quiltmuseum.org

Golden, Colo.

Foothills Art Center Rooted in Tradition:50 Quilts Through July 10,2005 303/279-3922; www.foothillsartcenter.org Golden,Colo.

Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum Small Works:Front Range Contemporary Quilters and Quilts ofComfort:Depression Era Quilts Through July 30,2005 Historic Beauties in Red and Green and Hopi Quilting Traditions Aug.1-Oct.29,2005 303/277-0377; www.rmqm.org Washington,D.C. Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum High Fiber Through July 10,2005 202/357-2020; www.si.edu

Boston, Mass.

Museum of Fine Arts The Quilts ofGee's Bend June 1-Aug.21,2005 617/267-9300; www.mfa.org Lowell, Mass.

New England Quilt Museum Pieces de Resistance: Batik Quilts Through June 19,2005 Mavericks:Antique Quilts with Unique Twists June 23-Aug. 14,2005 World War II Era Quilts Aug. 18-Oct. 30,2005 978/452-4207; www.nequiltmuseum.org Lincoln, Neb. Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery The Collector's Eye:Amish Quilts from the International Quilt Study Center Collections Through Aug. 7,2005 402/472-2461; www.sheldonartgallery.org

Lincoln, Neb. Museum of Nebraska History Great Plains Women: Patchwork Lives Through September 2005 402/471-4754; vvww.nebraskahistory.org/sites /mnh Athens,Ohio Dairy Barn Southeastern Ohio Cultural Arts Center Quilt National'05 Winners Through Sept. 5,2005 740/592-4981; www.quiltnational.com Tillamook, Ore. Latimer Quilt and Textile Center Three Uppity Women and the Bead Nuts Through July 17,2005 Diane O'Leary:17 Quilts About the Indigenous Inhabitants of Tillamook Bay July 19-Sept. 18,2005 503/842-8622; www.oregoncoast.com/latimer textile Intercourse,Pa. People's Place Quilt Museum A Showplace ofQuilts: Dazzling Contemporary Creations Ongoing 800/828-8218; wwvv.ppquiltmuseum.com Lancaster,Pa. Lancaster Quilt and Textile Museum Amish Quilts: Selections from the Esprit Collection Ongoing Textiles Are My Paint: Portrait Hooked Rugs by Linda Friedman Schmidt June 1-Dec.31,2005 717/299-6440; vvww.quiltandtextilemuseum.com

Harrisonburg, Va. Virginia Quilt Museum The Best ofthe Best-80 Heirloom Quilts from the VQM Collection Through July 11,2005 Paper Doll Quilts by Rebekka Seigal and Feedsack Quilts from the VQM Collection July 16-Oct. 3,2005 540/433-3818; www.vaquiltmuseum.org Shelburne, Vt. Shelburne Museum 25 American Quilts and the Women Who Made Them Through Oct. 31,2005 802/985-3346; wvvw.shelbumemuseum.org La Conner,Wash.

La Conner Quilt Museum Its aJungle OutThere:Patricia Goffette and Rebecca Barker's Quiltscape Challenge Through July 17,2005 Flying Solo:An Exploration in Textile Art:Anna Hergert and Seeking the Light Within:Sonia Grasvik July 20-Sept. 18,2005 "DearJane"Quilts Sept. 21-Dec.31,2005 360/466-4288; www.laconnerquilts.com

Don't miss the American Folk Art Museum exhibitions "Ancestry and Innovation: African American Art from the Collection," on view through Sept. 4, and "Folk Art Revealed," on continuous view, in which 20 guilts are on view.

Eleanor Berman is a volunteer at the American Folk Art Museum.

SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

73

BOOKS

'Dr VISITING

OF

INTEREST

COMPILED BY EVELYN R. GURNEY

AMMI PHILLIPS he following titles are available at the American Folk Art Museum's Book and Gift Shop at 45 West 53rd Street, New York City.To order, please call 212/265-1040. Museum members receive a 10 percent discount.(* New titles)

T

American Anthem: Masterworksfrom the American Folk Art Museum, Stacy C.Hollander, Brooke Davis Anderson,and Gerard C. Wertkin,American Folk Art Museum in association with Harry N.Abrams,2001, 432 pages,$65 American Fancy:Exuberance in the Arts, 1790-1840, Sumpter Priddy III, Chipstone Foundation, 2004,250 pages,$75

GET YOUR COPY TODAY! This handsome, limited-edition publication celebrating the work of 19th-century portrait painter Ammi Phillips is a must-have for serious collectors. Only 200 copies were originally produced. A small quantity of hand-numbered copies, in perfect condition, are now available at the museum shop for $200 each.

Revisiting Ammi Phillips: Fifty Years of American Portraiture

By Stacy C. Hollander and Howard P. Fertig American Folk Art Museum,1994 80 pages, 50 color plates, clothbound with dust jacket, 9 x 11" Includes an extensive chronology of the artist's life and an annotated checklist of 633 attributed paintings AMERICAN

AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM

BOOK AND GIFT SHOP 45 W. 53rd St., New York City 212. 265. 1040, ext. 124 giftshop@folkartmuseum.org

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American Folk Artfor Kids, Richard Panchyk,Chicago Review Press,2004,118 pages, $16.95

The Art ofAdqfWealth:St. AdolfGiant-Creation, Daniel Baumann and Elka Spoerri, American Folk Art Museum in association with Princeton University Press,2003, 112 pages,$29.95 *Bill Traylor, William Edmondson, and the ModernistImpulse, Josef Helfenstein and Roxanne Stanulis, eds., Krannert Art Museum,2005,208 pages,$40 Collecting American Folk Art, Helaine Fendelman and Susan Kleckner,House of Collectibles, 2004,196 pages,$12.95

â&#x20AC;˘ Coming Home:Self-TaughtArtists, the Bible, and the American South, Carol Crown,ed., University Press of Mississippi in association with the Art Museum ofthe American Painted Tinware:A University of Memphis,2004, Guide to Its Identification, Volume 111 Gina Martin and Lois Tucker, 304 pages,$65 (hardcover),$30 Historical Society of Early Amer- (softcover) ican Decoration,Inc.,2004,140 Create and Be Recognized:Photogpages,$48.50 raphy on the Edge,John Turner and Deborah Klochko,Chronicle American Radiance: The Ralph Books,2004,156 pages,$40 Esmerian Gift to the American Folk Art Museum, Stacy C.Hollander, Darger: The Henry Darger CollecAmerican Folk Art Museum in tion at the American Folk Art association with Harry N. Museum, Brooke Davis Anderson, Abrams,2001,572 pages,$75 American Folk Art Museum in -TaughtArt:An Illus- association with Harry N. American Sq. Abrams,2001,128 pages,$29.95 tratedAnalysis of20th-Century Artists and Trends with 1,319 CapA DeafArtist in Early America:The sule Biographies,Florence Laffal Worlds ofJohn BrewsterJr., Harlan and Julius Laffal, McFarland & Lane, Beacon Press,2004,208 Company,2003,322 pages,$45 pages,$35 ArchitectureforArt,American Art *Donald Mitchell- Right Museums 1938-2008, Scott J. Here, Right Now,Cheryl Tilden,ed., Harry N.Abrams, Rivers,ed., Creative 2004,238 pages,$60 Growth Arts Center,2005, 92 pages,$24.95

CRAIG FARROW Master Furniture Maker *Forms ofTradition in Contemporary Spain,Jo Farb Hernandez, University Press of Mississippi, 2005,256 pages,$65 (hardcover), $35 (softcover) Henry Darger:Disasters of War, Henry Darger, Kiyoko Lerner, and Klaus Biesenbach, KW Institute for Contemporary Art,2004, 213 pages,$29.95 Howard Finster(1916-2001), Norman Girardot,Diane LaBelle, and Ricardo Viera,Lehigh University Art Galleries,2004,90 pages, $32 *How to Look at Outsider Art, Lyle Rexer, Harry N. Abrams,2005, 176 pages,$22.95

One Is Adam, One Is Superman:The Outsider Artists ofCreative Growth, Leon Borenzstein, Chronicle Books,2004,131 pages,$40

ONE IS

ADP" ONE !PE K . NI k

The Perfect Game:America Looks at Baseball, Elizabeth V. Warren,American Folk Art Museum in association with Harry N.Abrams,2003,150 pages,$29.95 Raw Vision Outsider Art Sourcebook, John Maizels, Raw Vision,228 pages,2002,$29.95 * The Shipcarvers'Art:Figureheads and Cigar-Store Indians in Nineteenth-Century America, Ralph Sessions, Princeton University Press,2005,240 pages,$75

James Castle:HisI4fe andArt, Tom Trusky,Idaho Center for the Book,2004,190 pages,$29.95 (hardcover),$19.95 (softcover)

* Silk Stocking Mats:Hooked Rugs ofthe GrenfellMission, Paula Laverty,McGill Queen's University Press,2005,192 pages,$44.95

Lonnie Holley:Do We Think Too Much?IDon't Think We Can Ever Stop, David Moos and Michael Stanley, eds., Holzwarth Publications,2004,78 pages,$20

* Threading the Generations: A Mississippi Family's Quilt Legacy, Mary Elizabeth Johnson and Carol Vickers, University Press of Mississippi,2005,96 pages,$60 (hardcover),$35 (softcover)

* Miracles ofthe Spirit:Folk,Art, and Stories ofWisconsin, Don Krug and Ann Parker, University Press ofMississippi,2005,336 pages, $65 *New Museums, Raul A. Barreneche,Phaidon Press,2005, 208 pages,$69.95 North Carolina Pottery: The Collection ofthe Mint Museum, Barbara Stone Perry,ed.,University of North Carolina Press, 2004,210 pages,$24.95

Tools ofHer Ministry:The Art of Sister Gertrude Morgan, William A. Fagaly,American Folk Art Museum in association with Rizzoli,2004,120 pages,$35 Vernacular Visionaries:International OutsiderArt, Annie Carlano, Museum ofInternational Folk Art in association with Yale University Press,2003,156 pages, $45

When originals are not available History and artistry in wood 17th and 18th century American furniture Reproductions

240 Lewis Creek Drive Ferrisburgh, VT 05456

Please call 802-425-6070

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FOLK ART

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MUSEUM

Alexa Hampton (left) and Caroline Kerrigan

NEWS

BY VANESSA DAVIS

THE AMERICAN ANTIQUES SHOW 2005 he museum's American Antiques Show(TAAS)gala benefit preview on Jan. 19 kicked off Americana Week 2005 in New York City.The new year brought a new venue for TAAS, Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle, and the sprawling industrial space made for a stunning setting for a wide array ofantiques and folk art. The show,a benefit for the museum,is a four-day event in its fourth year.

TAAS is highly anticipated because ofthe stellar new objects the 47 dealers bring each year.In her review in the New York Times, Grace Glueck noted,"There's a lot offun to be had here,even if you can't buy it all." Even though a blizzard descended upon New York City during the weekend,it didn't stop hordes offolk art enthusiasts from filling the show floor.

This year a buzz surrounded the two- and three-dimensional cigar-wrapper collages by Felipe Jesus Consalvos at the FleisherOilman Gallery booth. Charlton Bradsher brought a small group of funny and revealing ledger drawings. Odd Fellows Antiques featured a c. 1900 accordion book of paper weavings and a bold geometric hooked rug made ofscraps of violet silk. A similar silk hooked rug in browns and greens could be found at Raccoon Creek Antiques.

Laura Fisher's overflowing booth included treasures such as a dazzling quilt made up of44,360 tiny squares and a quilt featuring 90 embroidered panels, each a rebus illustrating a different city.

Less anonymous work was also represented,such as limestone carvings by William Edmondson at the booths of Ricco/Maresca Gallery and David Wheatcroft Antiques.

Wild animals of all types abounded.Two unusual Tsimshian

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helmet masks in the shape of mosquitoes were mounted at David Cook Fine American Art,and Allan Katz's booth was watched over by a striking tiger head with glowing bronze eyes attributed to the shop of Samuel Robb.

A scene of Greenwich Village

by Ralph Fasanella could be found at Gemini Antiques.Trotta-Bono offered a Sioux drawing Edie Briskin (left), Alice Hoffman, and Trustee Barry D. Briskin with 95 numbered illustrations depicting the years 1823-1917.Joan R. Brownstein and Peter Eaton's booth featured a multitude of miniature â&#x20AC;˘ portraits in addition to a rare painting byJohn Usher Parsons.

Special events at the show included informative booth talks; a walking tour led by Margot Rosenberg, of Christie's; and,for those visitors who wanted to know the lost stories of their own treasures, experts in the field performed appraisals.The Folk Art Explorers got into the spirit ofAmericana Week with a day trip in the city.

TAAS Executive Director Caroline Kerrigan and show managers Keeling Wainwright and Associates pulled offthe show without a hitch. Press coverage was extensive, David and Jane Walentas including radio and television with Trustee Edward V. interviews,thanks to the efforts of 111 Thomas Jayne Blanchard Jr.(right) Susan Flamm,the museum's public relations director, and Rubenstein States,in Washington,D.C. Also Trustee L. John Wilkerson and Public Relations,Inc., which genhonored at the ceremony were Barbara Wilkerson erously donated its time.

Thomas Jayne,the 2005 chair of At the opening-night awards the Interior Designers'Committee, ceremony, held prior to the gala and the museum's director of opening-night preview,Alexa licensing, Alice Hoffman,who had Hampton received the TAAS 2005 served as executive director of American Spirit Award in recogni- TAAS 2002-2004. tion ofher recent selection as inteThe museum thanks Executive rior designer for Trowbridge Chairs Gayle Perkins Atkins and House,the new official guesthouse Charles N.Atkins,Edith S. and for former presidents ofthe United Barry D.Briskin,Joan and Victor

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATT FLYNN

From left: New York City Council members Vincent Gentile and David Weprin, Board President Laura Parsons, Acting Director Linda Dunne, Director Maria Ann Conelli, and Council member Allan Jennings

Consalvos collages at the Fleisher-011man Gallery booth

Susan and Jerry Lauren

Johnson, and Barbara and John Wilkerson; Executive Vice Chairs Rebecca and Michael Gamzon; TAAS 2005 Associates Joan Greenspan, Vincent M.Love,and Nancy Lutzke;TAAS 2005 Dealers Advisory Committee members Amy Finkel,Samuel Herrup, Allan and Penny Katz,Arthur Liverant,Frank Maresca,Judy Milne,and Elliot and Grace Snyder;Interior Designers'Committee members Bell-Guilmet Associates, Karin Blake, Cullman and Kravis,Inc., Diamond Baratta Design,Inc.,Jamie Drake,Mary Douglas Drysdale, Susan Zises Green,Albert Hadley, Mark Hampton,Inc.,Thomas Jayne Studio, Richard Mishaan Design, Matthew Patrick Smyth,and Bennett and Judie Weinstock Interiors, Inc.; and Regional Chairs Bob and Becky Alexander,Robert and Katharine Booth,Dr. Deborah Davenport and Stewart Stender, Barbara L. Gordon and Steve Cannon,Bruno and Lindsey LaRocca,Lawrence J. and Michelle Lasser, George and Kay Meyer,Bert Parsons, Christen and Duncan Pollock,Jeffrey Pressman and Nancy Kollisch, Margaret Z. Robson, Karen and David Sobotka,Irwin and Elizabeth Warren,and Rob and Michelle Wyles.

Special thanks go to the dauntless efforts of Caroline Kerrigan; Eleanor Garlow,advertising sales; and Katie Hush, manager ofspecial events.

Gail Brewer (left) and Trustee Joyce B. Cowin

Trustee Taryn Gottlieb Leavitt and Mark Leavitt

Gayle Perkins Atkins (left), Charles N. Atkins, and Kathy Chenault"

Marjorie Hirschhorn and' Trustee Robert Hirschhorn

Lora Fink and Trustee Laurence D. Fink

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AMERICUS of the American Folk Art Museum brings together folk art enthusiasts under the age of 45 for a variety of engaging educational and social activities.This dynamic group of young art patrons receives unparalleled access to the museum's resources and gains insight into the vibrant world of traditional and contemporary folk art Activities include exclusive curatorial tours, visits with local artists, and tours of private collections. All patron members under the age of 45 are invited to join. To learn more -S and US about the its current schedule of events, please contact Dana Clair, membership coordinator, at 212. 977. 7170, ext. 346, or dclair@folkartmuseum.org.

SMALL SLIPWARE PLATE WITH THREE WAVY STRIPES (detail) / Willoughby Smith / Wolmersdorf, Pennsylvania / c.1865-1880 / glazed red earthenware / American Folk Art Museum, promised gift of Ralph Esmerian, P1.2001.117 / Photo: C) 2000 John Bigelow Taylor, New York

EVENTS PRIVATE AT THE AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM Host a private event in the museum's awardwinning building at 45 West 53rd Street in midtown Manhattan.

Cocktail receptions for up to 300 guests Seated dinners for up to 120 guests Auditorium with full range of audio/visual technology for meetings and conferences AMERICAN

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For more information and to arrange a site visit, please contact Katie Hush at 212. 977. 7170, ext. 308, or khush@folkartmuseum.org.

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Photography roundtable participants (from left) William H. Hunt, Daile Kaplan, David Syrek, Merry Foresta, and Brooke Davis Anderson MUSEUM

NEWS

OUTSIDER ART WEEK 2005 he museum did things a little differently around the Outsider Art Fair this year, with the initiative of Outsider Art Week,Jan. 25-30. For the first time,the museum participated in the annual fair at the Puck Building with a multimedia booth,and exciting and provocative programming was presented at the museum to celebrate self-taught artists and their work.

Organized by Brooke Davis Anderson,director and curator of the Contemporary Center,the museum's booth featured a screening ofscenes from the documentary In the Realms ofthe UnrealThe Mystery ofHenry Darger, an installation of many of Darger's original artifacts from the museum's collection, and a raffle for the opportunity to win a sculpture created by self-taught artist Nek Chand,which was also on view. Franny Koelsch,of Houston,Tex., was the lucky winner.Throughout the weekend,the booth was manned by museum staffers Matthew Beaugrand, Dana Clair, Christine Corcoran, and Katie Hush,and volunteers Holly Conrad,Corinne Fitzgerald, Nadia Gould,Susann Hogue, Jennifer Lau,Frances Moore, Radhika Natarajan, David Rosenberg, and Lauren Sampson.

The Outsider Art Fair, organized by Sanford L. Smith and Associates,showcases contemporary self-taught artists' work as represented by more than 30 national and international galleries. Among the highlights were particularly striking African American quilts showcased by two galleries, Russell Bowman Art Advisory and Ricco/Maresca Gallery; a battlefield map by Henry Darger at the Carl Hammer Gallery booth; Emery Blagdon's paintings and wire

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constructions at the CavinMorris Gallery booth; and at the Phyllis Kind Gallery booth, many artists from Atelier Incurve—a vocational training facility for mentally disabled people in Japan that focuses on visual arts— including Terao Katsuhiro, an ironworker who makes etchings illustrating the blueprints ofimaginary structures, and Shinlci Tomoyuki,who produces his colorful drawings on a computer.

A week ofspecial educational programs began with a panel discussion on artists with autism; Uncommon Artists, the 13th annual series ofcameo talks, which featured speakers Edward Gomez on Domenico Zindato, Susan Larsen on Louis Monza, Jane Livingston on Thornton Dial Sr., and John Turner on collage and photography-based artworks; and a roundtable discussion on

Uncommon Artists participants (from left) Lee Kogan, Susan Larsen, Jane Livingston, Brooke Davis Anderson, John Turner, Edward Gomez, and Domenico Zindato TEM'OHAKY L.LN I ttf

115 eJean-Pierre Ritsch-Fisch (left) and Jean,Francois Kaiser

Autism/Asperger's/Art panelists (from left) Dr. Larry Dumont, Maria Teressa Canha, Pat McNellis, Barry Prizant, and Roger Ricco

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John Maizels, editor of Raw Vision, with Nek Chand figure raffled at the museum's booth

photography.The Folk Art Explorers'Inside Outsider Art day trip included a tour of an exhibition of art by mentally disabled artists at Hospital Audiences,Inc. Many thanks go to exhibitor Jean-Pierre RitschFisch of Ritsch-Fisch Galerie, Strasbourg, France,who generously donated 5 percent ofthe proceeds from show sales to the museum,in celebration ofthe gallery's tenth anniversary.The museum also warmly thanks Trustee Jacqueline Loewe Fowler

The museum's booth at the Outsider Art Fair

Matthew Beauqrand at the museum s booth

Eleanor Garlow, advertising sales, Folk Art magazine

and all ofthe artists, participants, coordinators, and sponsors—as well as the overwhelming number ofguests—who helped celebrate and discover the always fascinating and brilliant world ofselftaught artists. We can't wait to do it again next year!

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Director Emeritus Gerard C. Wertkin, Acting Director Linda Dunne, and Director Maria Ann Conelli (right)

NEWS

A CELEBRATORY MEMBERS' RECEPTION . five floors ofthe American Folk Art Museum were hopping when members flocked to its opening reception celebrating "Selfand Subject" and "Ancestry and Innovation: African American Art from the Collection" on March 15. After taking in the shows,guests enjoyed a cocktail reception in the Cullman/Danziger Family Atrium,which was awash in colors as vibrant as a Gee's Bend quilt and filled with the spirited sounds of Old Timey musicians Norris Bennett(on dulcimer,guitar, and banjo) and Dave Colding (on double bass).

Lee Kogan,curator of"Self and Subject," was on hand to discuss the exhibition, which explores the evolving nature of portraiture through a variety of media."Selfand Subject" was made possible by a generous grant from Just Folk/Susan Baerwald and Marcy Carsey, and will be on view until Sept. 11.

Curators Stacy C. Hollander and Brooke Davis Anderson,who jointly organized "Ancestry and Innovation," surveyed the museum's rich permanent collection ofcontemporary work by selftaught African American artists to mount the show,which includes complex quilts,sculptures, paintings,and works on paper.

Among the evening's many special guests were Caroline Cargo,representing her parents, longtime members Helen and Robert Cargo,who donated some ofthe quilts on view, and Arlene and Erica Poplcin, who loaned their grandfather Harry Lieberman's painting The Most Orthodox Rabbi. Other lenders in attendance included Trustee Taryn Gottlieb Leavitt and Mark Leavitt, Angela Sacks and Trustee

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Selig D.Sacks, Sini von Reis, and Thomas N.Whitehead. Members were additionally delighted to have the chance to meet artists Kevin Sampson,Linda Friedman Schmidt, and Malcah Zeldis, whose works were also on display.

Mother Oatmen:Lay Flat in the Wagon, Sampson's sculpture, attracted two full busloads of family and friends to the opening, including Mother Oatmen's children and grandchildren, and New Jersey senator Nia Gill. Sampson commented that the party felt like "more of a homecoming."

Lee Kogan (left) with lender Sin i von Reis

Robert Kleinberg and Trustee Lucy C. Danziger

From left: Rev. John Oatmen, Muss Oatmen, William Knight, Elizabeth Oatmen, Brooke Davis Anderson, Kevin Sampson, William Oatmen Jr., Avada Smith, Burchell Knight, Lena Sampson, Jean Anderson, Sharon McLain, Lauren Sampson, and Richard Lombardi

PHOTOGRAPHY MATT FLYNN

MUSEUM

NEWS

Stacy C. Hollander (far left) leading a tour

From left: Trustees L. John Wilkerson, Samuel Farber, and Selig D. Sacks with Angela Sacks

PATRONS ENJOY A FIRST LOOK n Feb. 5, more than 100 patron members came to the museum for an intimate preview celebration ofthe exhibition "Ancestry and Innovation." Co-curators Stacy C. Hollander and Brooke Davis Anderson led tours examining the works and their significance in the museum's collection, which has grown to include rich holdings ofcontemporary works by self-taught African American artists. In addition to getting a first look at this vibrant exhibition, patron members had a chance to meet artist Kevin Sampson,whose work is featured in the show.

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Marie di Manno, director of the museum shops From left: Avoline Simon, Natatia Griffith, and Chanise N. Hickson

FOLK ART FEAST useum trustee John Wilkerson and his wife,Barbara, were the gracious hosts ofa "Folk Art Feast," for patron members,in their New York City home on Jan.21.

Guests were treated to a menu of both delicious homemade cuisine

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From left: Laura Parsons, president of the Board of Trustees; City Councilman G. Oliver Koppell; and Director Maria Ann Conelli

and the Wilkersons'stunning collection of American folk art and tribal African art.

For information about the benefits of membership at the patron level, please call the membership office at 212/977-7170.

RISTINA JOHNSON

Folk Art Circle members Bob and Becky Alexander

From left: Trustee Michelle Lasser and Lawrence Lasser

Allan Katz (left), Irwin and Elizabeth Warren, and Penny Katz

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NEWS

4#4 , Kei Kobayoshi (left) and Lee Kogan

RUG DAY 2005 OPENING SEPTEMBER 14

OBSESSIVE DRAWING OPENING SEPTEMBER 20

SURFACE ATTRACTION PAINTED FURNITURE FROM THE COLLECTION

ow a celebrated annual event in its third year, Rug Day took place Saturday, March 12,augmented with a daylong workshop on March 11.The program,organized by the Folk Art Institute, attracted rug enthusiasts from far and wide to the museum to get together and share ideas,innovations, and techniques. Participants in the Friday workshop,"Hook the Blues," led

by Folk Art Institute instructor Marilyn Bottjer, completed a small, monochromatic hooked piece that drew on the museum's exhibition "Blue"for inspiration.

On Saturday morning, Kei Kobayoshi also held a workshop, in which the Shoo Fly pattern was used to create a small, octag-

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onal shoulder bag. Rug hooker Linda Rae Coughlin showed selections from "Art Rugs:The Art ofPlaying Cards," a traveling exhibition she organized featuring hooked rugs depicting a full deck ofplaying cards. Performing demonstrations in the Cullman/Danziger Family Atrium were nearly a dozen northeastern rug-hooking groups.

Lee Kogan,director ofthe Folk Art Institute, and Institute fellow and museum docent Deborah Ash gave tours throughout the day on the hooked rugs and other textiles on view in exhibitions at the museum.With the growing popularity ofthis event, be sure to look for the next rug-hooking celebration in March 2006!

FOLK ART SOCIETY AWARDS LEE KOGAN he museum is proud to announce that Lee Kogan, director ofthe Folk Art Institute and curator of special projects for the Contemporary Center,was awarded the Folk Art Society of America's Award of Distinction, at the society's conference in October 2004,in Oakland, Calif. She was cited for "her scholarship and dedicated service to the field offolk art."

In addition to teaching and organizing exhibitions, Kogan

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maintains extensive research archives and is frequently called upon to write introductions, prefaces, and chapters for books and catalogs. She also organizes the Uncommon Artists symposium held in conjunction with the Outsider Art Fair each year. Said Ann Oppenhimer,president of the Folk Art Society,"No one who has attended this program can forget her eloquent introductions ofthe powerful speakers she has assembled."

INTUIT SHOW

ART SEPTEMBER 30

OCTOBER 2, 2005 30. 6-9 5

American Primitive Gallery, New York, NY Andrew Edlin Gallery, New York, NY Angela Usrey, Chattanooga, TN Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Aron Packer Gallery, Chicago, IL Carl Hammer Gallery, Chicago, IL Cavin-Moms Gallery, New York, NY Clifford A Wallach Art & Americana, Dumbo, NY Corrine Riley, Chicago, IL Creative Growth Art Center, Oakland, CA Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, WI Elliott & Elliott, Harbor Springs, MI Esperanza, Chicago, IL Fish Out of Water, Chicago, IL Fleisher/011man Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Galerie Bonheur, St. Louis, MO Galerie St. Etienne, New York, NY Gold Goat, Rhinebeck, NY Harvey Art & Antiques, Evanston, IL

Hill Gallery, Birmingham, MI Hypoint Art & Antiques, Barrington, IL J Crist Gallery, Boise, ID Judy A Saslow Gallery, Chicago, IL Keny Galleries, Columbus, OH Lindsay Gallery, Columbus, OH Luise Ross Gallery, New York, NY Maggie Roche, Chicago, IL Marion Harris, New York, NY Norman Brosterman, East Hampton, NY Odd Fellows Art & Antiques, Mt. Vernon, ME The Pardee Collection, Iowa City, IA Phyllis Kind Gallery, New York, NY R. Ege Antiques, St. Louis, MO Ricco/Maresca Gallery, New York, NY Ridge Art, Oak Park, IL Russell Bowman Art Advisory, Chicago, IL Yard Dog Folk Art, Austin, TX Yukiko Koide, Tokyo, Japan

Intuit welcomes the Folk Art Society of America's annual conference to Chicago the same weekend.

Visit Intuit's website for other exciting events and activities held that weekend with both Intuit and FASA.

INTUIT: THE CENTER FOR INTUITIVE AND OUTSIDER ART

Abbey Flamm finding a "blue" clue in "Folk Art Revealed" MUSEUM

NEWS

Many families enjoying the day's events!

SHAKING THE FEBRUARY BLUES! n Feb.6,the education department,in cooperation with Nickelodeon Jr., presented Blue's Clues Family Day. Twelve hundred people participated in the many activities and events offered,including story time with actor Donovan Patton ("Joe") and Blue's Clues creator Traci Paige Johnson,collage projects, hunts for"blue"clues in the museum's exhibitions, and picturetaking in the original Thinking Chair from the television show.

The event would not have been possible without the hard work of our wonderful museum staff members and terrific volunteers.

Special thanks go to Diana Schlesinger, director ofeducation;

:$ 0,0*

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Donovan Patton ("Joe")and Traci Paige Johnson telling a story

Janet Lo,manager ofschool and docent programs; Madelaine Gill, family programs coordinator; and Katie Hush,special events manager. One visitor commented, "Thank you so much for such a memorable day.I could not believe the size ofthe crowd! And on top ofeverythingâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;they were really looking at and enjoying the art!"

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LEGACY Through a bequest, you can provide enduring support for the American Folk Art Museum. The CLARION SOCIETY recognizes individuals who have remembered the museum in their wills and through other planned gifts. Members of the Clarion Society will be listed annually in Folk Art magazine and receive invitations to exclusive events throughout the year.

If you have made a bequest to the American Folk Art Museum or would like to do so, please contact Christine Corcoran, manager of individual giving, at 212. 977. 7170, ext. 328, or ccorcoran@folkartmuseum.org.

THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM (detail)/ Edward Hicks / Newtown, Pennsylvania / 1846-1848 / oil on canvas / American Folk Art Museum, promised gift of Ralph Esmerian, P1.2001.59 /0 2000 John Bigelow Taylor, New York

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A NIERICAN

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Featuring 110 outstanding dealers exhibiting 18th, 19th & early 20th c. authentic antiques in room settings.

• On-site shipper

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• Outdoor barbecue

Salisbury Visiting Nurse Association

Purchase our 2-Show Ticket for $30 at Mid-Week and save $5 off Early-Buying at The Bedford Pickers Market on Friday, Aug. 12

IN OCTOBER THE PENNSYLVANIA ANTIQUES SHOW

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OCTOBER 21 AND 22 FRIDAY, 10AM - 7PM,$10 SATURDAY, 10AM - 5PM,$10 Over 100 American antiques specialists present 18th, 19th and Early 20th c. antiques in room-settings.

Quality,yintiques Show Friday, August 12

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MUSEUM

NEWS

From left: Frederick Weston; featured poets Samantha Reisz, Maria Di Meglio, and Dan Blondell; and Ed McCarthy

Last year's find was Jacques de Duglass â&#x20AC;&#x201D; what will you find this year?

Labor Day Weekend September 2-4, 2005

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Judith Racht Gallery Harbert, Michigan Information: 269-469-1080 www.judithrachtgallery.net

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Self-taught â&#x20AC;˘ Visionary Folk Art Fair

THE

GERARD C. WERTKIN EXHIBITION FUND honors the American Folk Art Museum's director emeritus and the transforming role he has played in the life of the institution.

Contributions to the fund will directly support the development and installation of new exhibitions.

For more information, please contact Christine Corcoran, manager of individual giving, at 212. 977. 7170, ext. 328, or ccorcoran@folkartmuseum.org.

AMERICAN

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DAY WITH(OUT) ART breakfast ceremony at the museum's Eva and Morris Feld Gallery at Lincoln Square celebrating the museum's annual collaboration with Visual AIDS and Manhattan's LaGuardia High School ofthe Arts in honor ofthe international Day With(out) Art took place on March 4. Day With(out) Art is marked each year by the artworld on Dec.1 to increase AIDS awareness in the visual arts. For the 2004 project, Frederick

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Weston,an artist living with AIDS,presented his artwork to the creative writing students of teacher Ed McCarthy,who charged them to draw on Weston's experience to create their own poetry. Project sponsor William Louis-Dreyfus, president ofthe Poetry Society of America,selected three poems to be read at the ceremony,and a booklet containing all ofthe students' poems was distributed.

FOLK ART CIRCLE ecause membership dues cover only 6 percent of museum operating expenses, annual giving plays a crucial role in raising the additional $2.5 million needed each year to keep the museum's lights on and its doors open.In spring 2005,Trustee Nancy Mead shaped and spearheaded a new program ofdonor recognition called the Folk Art Circle.

The Folk Art Circle's menu of naming opportunities encourages donors to personalize their commitment to the museum with gifts of$2,500 to $25,000 for special projects that range from sponsoring the display ofan object from the collection to underwriting an issue ofFolk Art. Supporters at the $5,000 level and above are eligible to host a private event at the museum.To further thank participants,a list ofFolk Art Circle

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members will appear in the museum's Cullrnan/Danziger Family Atrium and in Folk Art. The museum gratefully acknowledges the generous support ofthe Folk Art Circle: Becky and Bob Alexander,Peggy and Richard Danziger,Claire and Fred Eckert, Merle and Barry Ginsburg,Mary Ellen Vehlow and Stephen Hessler, the Manoogian Simone Foundation, Linda and Christopher Mayer,D'Arcy and Dana G.Mead Jr., Nancy and Dana G.Mead, Susan and Mark C.Mead,Loree and Richard Meyer,Anne and Jeff Miller,JoEllen and David Oskin, Dorothea and Leo Rabkin,Myra and George Shaskan, Carol P. Schatt,Jan Whitlock,and Robert N.Wilson.Through their generous annual giving, members ofthe Folk Art Circle ensure that the museum and its programs will continue to thrive.

GARY SNYDER FINE ART

WORKS OF ART BY JANET SOBEL

PO Box 1945 Murray Hill Station, New York, NY 10156 212 871 1077 gary@garysnydertineart.com modernamericanart com

MUSEUM

NEWS

GERARD C. WERTKIN EXHIBITION FUND

ON THE ROAD merican Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum," originally on view at the museum in 2002 to 2003,traveled this year to the Frist Center for the Visual Arts in Nashville in January and dosed in May. Co-curators Stacy C. Hollander and Brooke Davis Anderson traveled to Nashville as well,in March and April, respectively, to participate in the Frist's series oflectures. Hollander spoke about the early works in the exhibition and drew in the center's largest audience to date for a noon lecture.

Before her talk she was interviewed about"American Anthem"and the American Folk Art Museum,and the interview was paired with the taped lecture for public television. Anderson's lecture focused on modern production of folk art and the blurring boundaries of this genre.

A

he museum's Board ofTrustees is delighted to recognize the generosity of hundreds ofcontributors to the Gerard C.Wertkin Exhibition Fund, which already stands at more than $300,000.The fund was established to honor the museum's director emeritus, who brought national recognition to folk art as a foundation of American culture through the production ofsuperb exhibitions during his tenure as director.The cash reserve created will provide the critical support necessary to ensure that future exhibitions maintain the caliber of scholarship on which the American Folk Art Museum has built its reputation. For more information about this and other giving opportunities, please contact Christine Corcoran, manager ofindividual giving, at 212/977-7170,ext. 328,or ccorcoran@follcartmuseum.org.

T

Stacy C. Hollander

Brooke Davis Anderson

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Si

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LEND YOUR NAME... and inspire others to do the same. With a gift of $2,500 to $25,000, you can sponsor the display of an object in the American Folk Art Museum or underwrite an exhibition or an issue of Folk Art magazine. Join the FOLK ART CIRCLE and see your name in the museum's Cullman/Danziger Family Atrium and in Folk Art. To join the museum's quickly expanding circle of friends, please contact Christine Corcoran, manager of individual giving, at 212. 977. 7170, ext. 328, or ccorcoran@folkartmuseum.org.

AMERICAN

0 ME1121M1

LIEBESBRIEF (detail) / Christian Strenge / East Petersburg, Pennsylvania / c. 1790 / watercolor and ink on cut paper!

American Folk Art Museum, promised gift of Ralph Esmerian, P1.2001.209 / Photo: Schecter Lee, New York

88 SUMMER 2005

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' THEV1 SHIPCARVERS' ART

OBITUARIES

Figureheads and Cigar-Store Indians in Nineteenth-Century America

BY LEE KOGAN

Ralph Sessions JUDITH SCOTT (1943-2005) udith Scott, whose intricate, fiber-wrapped,cocoonlike J sculptures have garnered her a remarkable artistic reputation, died on March 14. Born with Down's syndrome, Scott was institutionalized in Ohio for 36 years until she was reunited in Berkeley, Calif,with her twin sister,Joyce,in 1984. Scott's artistic career began and thrived at the Creative Growth Art Center,in Oaldand,a leading art center and gallery for adult artists with developmental, physical, and mental disabilities.

Five days a week for 20 years, Scott went to Creative Growth to work on her sculptures, often spending months on a single piece. She worked by steadily wrapping,weaving,twisting, and tying yarn and other fibers around an internal support ofa variety of random objects,sometimes completely encasing them within.

Commenting on Scott's work, Tom di Maria, executive director

Among the most popular and ubiquitous sculptures in nineteenth-century America were the ship's figurehead and the cigar-store Indian. The vast majority of these engaging human figures were created by shipcarvers.

The Shipcarvers' Art is the first book to assess the artistry and history of these two closely related crafts in a single volume. Richly illustrated and elegantly written, it brings these marvelous figures alive once more.

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of Creative Growth,said,"I think she was trying to convey her sense ofconfinement,then freedom.I think she was also trying to mark her place in the world:'This is what I do,this is who I am,this is my contribution.'"

Scott's work is in the American Folk Art Museum collection, gifted by Creative Growth,and was exhibited in 2003.

S

PRINCETON -800_777-4726 U.S. 'University Press www.pup.princetotLedu 000 ,

The only book that lays out the ground rules for appreciating outsider artworks.

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Undeterred by his disability, Bolden enjoyed constructing sculptures as well as gardening.

He began creating totemlike figures more than 30 years ago to keep birds and insects out of his garden. He also created smaller, abstract, masklike assemblages that were intermixed with the larger iconic figures. Varying in size from a few inches to sometimes more than 12 feet, the sculptures were made from recycled tin cans, pots, pans,bottles,

celebrating too Years ofExcellence

buckets,shovel heads,wood, lengths ofgarden hose,bits of carpet, clothing remnants, and leather strips that Bolden inventively refashioned. He spent much time preparing his metal elements, removing rust to make the metal surfaces smooth. His environment was an impressive yard show.

Bolden's work is included in the traveling exhibition "Coming Home! Self-Taught Artists, the Bible, and the American South," which is currently on view in New York (see page 22).

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PUBLIC

PROGRAMS

Unless otherwise specified, all programs are held at the American Folk Art Museum,45 West 53rd Street, New York City. Programs are open to the public, and admission fees vary Program tickets include museum admission. For more information, please call the education department at 212/265-1040,ext. 102,or pick up the museum's public programs brochure.To purchase tickets, please call 212/265-1040, ext. 160.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

www.churchstreetart.com Church Street Art Gallery specializes in self-taught, outsider and folk art (with a few exceptions).

Church Street Art Gallery 34 Church Street • Lenox, MA • Tel. 888-637-9633

FILM AND VIDEO SCREENINGS Fridays at 12:30 PM Aug.5, 12, 19, and 26 Free with museum admission A series ofdocumentaries on African American artists and quilters, including With Fingers of Love, about the Freedom() spiking Bee collaborative TAKE A BREAK FOR FOLK ART Selected Thursdays at noon Informal lunchtime tours with museum curators Free with museum admission Contemporary Artworks from 'Ancestry and Innovation" June 2 Brooke Davis Anderson, exhibition co-curator Exploring"Selfand Subject" June 16,July 14, and Aug. 11 Lee Kogan, exhibition curator Quilts from "Ancestry and Innovation" June 16,July 21, and Aug.4 Stacy Hollander, exhibition co-curator

"Old Car" ca. 1988 by Jimmie Lee Sudduth

Classic & contemporary folk art

IATTARtT.YA_RDDOG.COM YARD DOG FOLK ART 1510 S. CONGRESS AVE. AUSTIN,TX 78704 512.912.1613 FOLICART@SWBELL.NET

FAMILY ART WORKSHOPS Sundays at 2:00 PM June 19, Lovely Letters; July 10, Smile! Polaroid Portraits;July 24, Folk Art Garden

SCHOOL AND ADULT GROUP TOURS For information about booking school and other group tours, please call the education department at 212/265-1040,ext. 381.

The museum is fully accessible and offers tours for groups with special needs. Additional leadtime may be necessary to arrange these tours.

CAMP PROGRAMS Summer campers at the American Folk Art Museum will explore the museum's exhibitions through hands-on projects with themes like Materials:Tried and True with Strange and New;Portraying Their World; and Animals Are Everywhere. Interactive tours and workshops for camp groups are offered in July and August and are appropriate for K-12 students.

Programs begin at 10:45 AM, Tuesday through Friday. For more details or to make a reservation, please call 212/265-1040, ext. 381.

SUMMER TEACHER INSTITUTE Join other educators in July to explore the museum's collection and learn how to integrate folk art into the classroom curriculum in the museum's weeklong intensive Summer Teacher Institute focusing on the exhibition "Folk Art Revealed." For more details, call 212/265-1040, ext. 119.

Major supportfor education is provided by the William Randolph Hearst Foundation.Additionalfundingforpublicprograms is provided in part by Citigroup Foundation, Consolidated Edison Company, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the New York City Department ofCulturalAffairs.

Family art workshops are sponsored by DArcy and Dana G. MeadJr. and Susan and Mark C. Mead.

90 SUMMER 2005

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MUSEUM

INFORMATION

ANTIQUE TEXTILES VINTAGE FASHIONS SHOW & SALE

HOURS AND ADMISSIONS

AMERICAN

0 MUSEUM

American Folk Art Museum 45 West 53rd Street (between 5th and 6th Avenues) New York, NY 10019 212/265-1040 www.folkartmuseum.org

MUSEUM HOURS Tuesday—Sunday Friday Monday

10:30Am-5:30Pm 10:30Am-7:30pm Closed

SHOP HOURS Saturday—Thursday Friday

10:00Am-6:00Pm 10:00Am-8:00Pm

ADMISSION Adults Students/Seniors Children under 12 Members

$9 $7 Free Free

Friday evening 5:30-7:30pm

Group tours available, call for information: 212/265-1040 Public Transportation Subway:E or V to 5 Avenue/53 Street F to 47-50 Streets, Rockefeller Center Bus: Ml,M2,M3,M4, M5,M6,or M7

125 BOOTHS • FABRICS

2005 MONDAYS JULY 4 SEPT.5

QUILTS TRIMMINGS BUTTONS LINENS OLD JEWELRY LACES ANTIQUE CLOTHING & RIES ACC

EARLY ADMISSION 930 AM $20 GENERAL ADMISSION 11:00 AM $5

ffiat I HOST HOTEL-STURBRIDGE Route 20, Sturbridge, MA I I) Oct. Mass Pike & 141) LINDA MAAS 207-439-2334

ROUNDTRIP BUS FROM NYC $69

Free to all

EXHIBITION SCHEDULE

Folk Art Revealed Atrium and Floors 4 and 5 On continuous view Ancestry and Innovation: African American Artfrom the Collection Floor 2 Through Sept. 4,2005

ANTIQUES in the VALLEY June 17th 6-18th, 2005 Friday. llam-7pm Saturday.10am-4pm

Selfand Subject Floor 3 Through Sept. 11,2005 Obsessive Drawing Floor 2 Sept. 14,2005—March 19, 2006

GAVIN ASHWORTH

Surface Attraction: Painted Furniture from the Collection Floor 3 Sept. 20,2005—March 26,2006

SELF-PORTRAIT / Joseph Garlock (1884-1980)! probably Woodstock, New York /1957 / paint 2x 6 x 25/."/ American Folk Art / on wood /151 Museum, gift of Suzanne M. Richie, 2003.18.1

Oley Valley High School Oley. Berks County. Pa. 19547 Located on Route #73in Southeastern Pa.

55 Outstanding Antique Dealers will be Showcasing their Finest 18th. 19th and early 20th Century Pieces Admission - $6.00per person Portion ofProceeds benefit Student Scholarships at Oley Valley Information - 610-987-3312 or 610-779-0705

On view in "Seyand Subject"

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TRUSTEES/DONORS

AMERICAN

FOLK

ART

MUSEUM

BOARD OF TRUSTEES Executive Committee Ralph 0.Esmerian, Chairman Laura Parsons, President Frances Sirota Martinson,Esq., Vice President Lucy Cullman Danziger, Vice President Barry D.Briskin, Treasurer Taryn Gottlieb Leavitt, Secretary Didi Barrett Edward V. Blanchard Jr.

Joyce B. Cowin Samuel Farber Joan M.Johnson Selig D. Sacks,Esq. Members Akosua Barthwell Evans Barbara Cate David L.Davies Laurence D.Fink

Jacqueline Fowler Susan Gutfreund Robert L.Hirschhom ICristina Johnson, Esq. Michelle L. Lasser Nancy Mead J. Randall Plummer Margaret Z.Robson Bonnie Strauss Nathaniel J. Sutton

Richard H.Walker,Esq. L.John Wilkerson Trustees Emeriti Joseph F. Cullman 3rd (1912-2004) Cordelia Hamilton Cyril I. Nelson George F. Shaskan Jr.

CAPITAL CAMPAIGN DONORS The American Folk Art Museum is grateful to the following donors who have contributed a combined total of more than $33.8 million toward the construction and endowment of its new home at 45 West 53rd Street: Marjorie W.Abel James & Gail Addiss Dr.& Mrs. Karl P. Adler Alconda-Owsley Foundation Judith Alexander George R.Allen 8c Gordon L.Wyckoff, Raccoon Creek Antiques American Capital Access The American Folk Art Society Barbara Anderson Ingrid & Richard Anderson Mania Anderson Marie T. Annoual Aame Anton Barbara Ardizone Marion Armstrong R.R. Atkins Foundation Lois S.&Gad Avigad Joan &Darwin Bahm Marcia Bain Lori Ann Baker, Baker &Co.Designs Ltd. Marianne E.Balazs Bankers Trust Company Barn Star Productions,Inc. Didi &David Barrett Jimi Barton, Rhinebeck Antiques Fair Joyce &Ron Bassin, Bird In Hand Denny Beach Patricia Beatty Mary F. Beck Judy &Barry Bel in honor of Alice &Ron Hoffinan Philip & Leah Bell Laurine Hawkins Ben-Dov Mrs. Arthur M.Berger Julie M.Bernson Big Apple Wrecking & Construction Corporation Mrs. George P. Bissell Jr. Diana H.Bittel Edward V.Blanchard Jr. &M.Anne Hill Lenore & Stephen Blank Bloomberg L.P. The Bodman Foundation Booth Ferris Foundation Robert, Katharine &Courtney Booth Catherine 8c Chris Botta Marilyn W.Bottjer Ronald Bourgeault, Northeast Auctions Edith S.&Barry D.Briskin, The Shirley K. Schlafer Foundation Susan Brodish Florence Brody Sheila &Auron Brog R. Scott Bromley The Brown Foundation,Inc. Curtis F. Brown,Hayden Goldberg Mr.&Mrs.Edward James Brown Gail Brown Marc Brown 8c Laurene ICrasny Brown J. Bruce Antiques

92 SUMMER 2005

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Fred &Theresa Buchanan in memory of Sybil Gibson Charles 8c Deborah Burgess Jim Burk Antique Shows The Burnett Group Joyce A. Burns Marcy L.Bums,American Indian Arts Paul &Dana Caan Lewis P. Cabot Elinor B. Cahn Mr.8c Mrs. Donald Campbell Bliss 8c Brigitte Camochan John W.Castello in memory of Adele Earnest Caterpillar Foundation Donald N.Cavanaugh 8c Edward G.Blue Edward Lee Cave Virginia G. Cave Shari Cavin & Randall Morris Peter P. Cecere Sharon S. Cheeseman Christie's Richard &Teresa Ciccotelli Barbara L. Claster Lori Cohen Alexis &George Contos Judy Angelo Cowen Foundation Mrs. Daniel Cowin In memory of Daniel Cowin Jeanne D.Creps Mr.&Mrs.Edgar M.Cullman Elissa F. &Edgar M.Cullman Jr. Joe &Joan Cullman Susan R.Cullman Catherine G.Curran Kendra &Allan Daniel David & Sheena Danziger Lucy &Mike Danziger Peggy 8c Richard M.Danziger David L.Davies Joseph Del Valle Vincent&Stephanie DiCicco H. Richard Dietrich Jr. Mr.&Mrs.Charles M.Diker Patricia McFadden Dombal Colette &Jim Donovan Kathleen M.Doyle,Doyle New York Deborah &Arnold Dunn Ray 8c Susan Egan Gloria Einbender Sharon &Ted Eisenstat Elmer Family Fund in honor of Anne Hill &Monty Blanchard David &.Doris Walton Epner Joyce 8c Klaus Eppler Ralph 0.Esmerian Susan H.Evans In memory ofHeila D.Everard Sam &Betsey Farber Nancy Farmer &Everette James Mike &Doris Feinsilber Bequest ofEva & Morris Feld Elizabeth C. Feldmann M.Finkel&Daughter Fireman's Fund Insurance Company Deborah Fahbein Alexander &Enid Fisher Laura Fisher, Antique Quilts & Americana

Jacqueline Fowler Beverly Frank Gretchen Freeman &Alan Silverman Mrs.Albert D. Freiberg Susan 0.Friedman Alvin E.Friedman-Kim,M.D. Furthermore,the publication program of the J.M. Kaplan Fund Galerie St. Etienne,Inc. Gallery of Graphic Arts, Ltd. Rebecca 8c Michael Gamzon Judy&Jules Gaze."

Rich &Pat Garthoeffner Garth's Auctions,Inc. Sidney&Sandra Gecker Nancy Gerber Morad Ghadamian Sima Ghadamian Merle &Barry Ginsburg James &.Nancy Glazer Mr.&Mrs.Merle H.Glick Carla T. Goers Edith H. Goldberg Russ & Karen Goldberger Mrs.Toni L. Goldfarb Tracy Goodnow Art &Antiques Ellin &Baron Gordon Howard Graff Jonathan Green Nancy M.&Ben S. Greenberg Greene &Mays American Antiques Marion E. Greene Blanche Greenstein &Thomas Woodard William & Shirley E. Greenwald Peg &Judd Gregory Audrey Ellcinson Griff Bonnie Grossman,The Ames Gallery Path Guthman Alan &Elaine Haid Robert&Linda Hall Cordelia Hamilton Ken &Debra Hamlett Nancy B. Hanson Jeanne & Herbert Hansel Deborah Harding Marion Harris &Jerry Rosenfeld Harvey Art 8c Antiques Audrey Heckler Donald Heller, Heller/VVasham Nina Hellman Jeffrey Henkel Mr.&Mrs.George Henry Mr.&Mrs.Samuel Herrup Ann Hickerson 8c Martha Hicicerson Antonio Hidalgo The High Five Foundation Frederick D.Hill Pamela &Timothy Hill Kit Hinrichs Robert &Marjorie Hirschhom &Carolyn Hirschhom Schenker,The Hirschhorn Foundation Historical Society of Early American Decoration Arlene &Leonard Hochman Mr.& Mrs.Joseph C.Hoopes Jr. Carter G.Houck Sr. Evelyn Houlroyd

Ellen E.Howe Mr.& Mrs.Philip Howlett Allen 8c Barry Hoffman Peter D.Hynson Antiques Paul Ingersoll In the Beginning Fabrics Thomas Isenberg In memory of Laura N.Israel Thomas &Barbara Israel Martin & KittyJacobs,The Splendid Peasant Johnson &Johnson Joan & Victor Johnson ICristina Johnson,Esq. Louise 8c George Kaminow Julie &Sandy Palley and Samuel 8c Rebecca Kardon Foundation Allan &Penny Katz Edwin U.Keates,M.D. Steven 8c Helen Kellogg Jolie Keiser 8c Michael Malce Richard ICemble 8c George Kom, Forager House Collection Mrs. David J. Kend Leigh Keno Amy Keys Phyllis Kind Joe K. ICindig III Jacqueline &Jonathan King Susan 8c Robert E. Klein Nancy Knudsen Nancy ICollisch &Jeffrey Pressman Greg K. Kramer David &Barbara 'Crashes Dr. Robert & Arlene ICreisler Sherry & Mark ICronenfeld Robert A. Landau Bnino &Lindsey LaRocca Michelle &Lawrence Lasser William 8c Karen Lauder Jerry 8c Susan Lauren Wendy &Mel Lavitt Mark 8cTaryn Leavitt The Edith and Herbert Lehman Foundation,Inc. In memory of Henry J.&Erna D. Leir John A.Levin &Co.,Inc. Morris Levinson Foundation,Inc. Bertram Levinston, M.D. Levy Charitable Trust Judy Lewis The Liman Foundation Lipman Family Foundation The 2000 Lipman Fellows Bruce Lisman In memory ofZeke Liverant Nancy MacKay Nancy &Erwin Maddrey Anne & Vincent Mai Maine Antigua Digest The Jane Marcher Foundation Paul Martinson, Frances Martinson 8c Howard Graffin memory of Burt Martinson Mr.& Mrs. Christopher Mayer Mrs. Myron Mayer In honor of Nancy Mayer Kerry McCarthy Milly McGehee Nancy and Dana Mead

Mary Michael Shelley Mary 0.Mecagni Robert &Meryl Meltzer Charles W.MerreIs Evelyn S. Meyer George H.Meyer Jim &Enid Michelman Mrs. E.J. Milano Mr.&Mrs.Samuel C.Miller Judith &James Milne Jean Mitchell Sandra Moers JP Morgan Chase &Co. Keith &Lauren Morgan Alden &Jane Munson Lucia Cirino Murphy Drew Neisser Cyril Irwin Nelson New York City Department of Cultural Affairs New York State Margaret &David Nichols Thurston Nichols Mr.&Mrs.Frank N.Norris Jr. Susan Nova Sally W.O'Day Odd Fellows Antiques Bequest of Mattie Lou O'Kelley Olde Hope Antiques Cheryl Oppenheim &John Waters The Overbrook Foundation Patsy Palmer &Talbot D'Alemberte Virginia Parks Patemostro Investments Eloise Paula Rolando 8c Karin Perez Jan Petry Philip Morris Companies Inc. Elizabeth A.Pile Harriet Marple Plehn Trust Carolinn Pocher &William Woody,Darwin Frank &Barbara Pollack Lucile &Maurice Pollak Fund Ronald &Debra Pook,Pook 8c Pook Inc. Wayne Pratt,Inc. Fran Puccinelli Jackie Radwin Teresa Ranellone Christopher T. Rebollo Antiques Ricco/Maresca Gallery Julia &Leroy Richie Jeanne Riger Marguerite Riordan John 8c Margaret Robson Foundation Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Fund Le Rowell Miss Virginia Carolyn Rudd F. Russack Antiques &Books,Inc. Selig D.Sults Judith Sagan Mary Sams,Ballyhack Antiques Jack &Mary-Lou Savitt Peter L. Schaffer Carol Peden Schatt Shirley K. Schlafer Memorial Fund In memory of Esther &Sam Schwartz Marilyn &Joseph Schwartz The Schwartz Gallery,Philadelphia Phyllis &Al Selnick Jean S.&Frederic A. Sharf The Peter Jay Sharp Foundation In honor of George Shaskan The George and Myra Shaskan Foundation,Inc. Roz& Steve Shaw Arthur 8c Suzanne Shawe Harvey S. Shipley Miller &J.Randall Plummer Elle Shushan Jo Sibley John Sideli Eleanor R. Siegal Francisco F. Sierra Elizabeth Silverman

Slcinner, Inc., Auctioneers and Appraisers of Antiques and Fine Art Sanford L Smith &Patricia Lynch Smith Sarah Barr Snook Elliott 8c Grace Snyder Mr.& Mrs. Peter J. Solomon Sotheby's Maxine Spiegel Nancy T.&Gary J. Suss Frederick Stecker Stella Show Mgmt.Co. Su-Ellyn Stern Tamar Stone 8c Robert Eckstein Ellen Stone-Belie Rachel&Donald Strauber Bonnie &Tom Strauss The R.David Sudarsky Charitable Foundation Nathaniel J. Sutton Leslie Sweedler John & Catherine Sweeney William Swislow Talcashimaya Co., Ltd. Connie Tavel Richard &Maureen Taylor David Teiger Nancy Thomas Tiffany &,Co. Jeffrey Tillou Antiques Peter Tillou Pamela P.Tisza Jean L.8c Raymond S.Troubh Fund Tucker Station Antiques Karen Ulfers John & Kathleen Ullmann Lee &Cynthia Vance Jacob &Ray Van Gelder Bob &Ellie Vermillion Joan &Clifford Vemick Joseph & Meryle Viener Robert E. Voellde I.H.& Birgitta X.L. von Zelowitz David &Jane Walentas Jennifer Walker Clifford A.Wallach Irene N.Walsh Don Walters &Mary Benisek Warburg Pincus The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts Elizabeth 8cIrwin Warren Nani S.Warren Marta Watterson Weeden Brothers: Bill, Alan,Jack &Don Mr.&Mrs.Alan N.Weeden Weil, Gotshal 8c Manges LLP Frederick S. Weiser David M.Weiss Jay &Meryl Weiss Ed Weissman Julia Weissman Mr. &Mrs.Peter Wells Ben Werticin David Wheatcroft Harry Wicks Donald K.Wilkerson,M.D. John &Barbara Wilkerson The Jamison Williams Foundation Nelson M.Williams John Wilmerding Charles &Phyllis Wilson Robert N.Wilson &Anne Wright Wilson Dr.Joseph M.&Janet H.Winston Susan Yecies J. Evelyn Yoder Valerie Young Shelly Zegart Antique Quilts Malcah Zeldis Bernadette Mary Zemenick Steven J. Zick Jon &Becky Zoler 27 anonymous donors

Demonstration carving summer Saturdays at the

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AUTHENTIC DESIGNS www.authenticdesigns.com West Rupert, Vermont 05776 (802) 394-7713 â&#x20AC;˘ 800-844-9416 Catalogues $3.00 each

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DONORS

DONORS

FOR EXHIBITIONS AND OPERATIONS

The American Folk Art Museum is grateful to the following friends who provided generous support for museum programs and operating activities during the period of July 1, 2004-February 28, 2005: $50,000 & up Edith S.&Barry D.Briskin Leir Charitable Trusts Nancy &Dana G.Mead Laura & Richard Parsons Peter Jay Sharp Foundation Bonnie &Thomas W.Strauss $20,000-$49,999 Didi &David Barrett Edward V. Blanchard Jr. Bloomberg LP The Brown Foundation Citigroup Lucy 8c Frederick M.Danziger Vivian 8c Strachan Donnelley Betsey& Samuel Farber Just Folk/Susan Baerwald 8c Marcy Carsey Latham &Watkins National Jewelry Institute New York State Council on the Arts J. Randall Plummer Barbara &John Wilkerson $10,000-$19,999 Davis Polk &Wardwell Fried, Frank, Harris,Shriver &Jacobson Johnson &Johnson JP Morgan Chase &Co. LEF Foundation Cynthia & Dan W.Lufkin Pfizer,Inc. Dorothea &Leo Rablcin Kate Stettner & Carl Lobell Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz White &Case $5,000-$9,999 Lois &Gad Avigad Akosua Barthwell Evans Bristol-Myers Squibb Company John R.&Dorothy D.Caples Fund The Bonnie Cashin Fund Jacqueline Fowler Mark Goldman Nancy &Tim Grumbacher Joan &Victor L.Johnson Luise & Robert Kleintierg Barbara &David Krashes Robert Lehman Foundation,Inc. Beverly &Peter Lipman Frances Sirota Martinson Emily Anne Nixon Angela & Selig Sacks Mr.&Mrs.Peter L. Sheldon Smith Richardson Foundation Sini von Reis Elizabeth &Irwin H.Warren Tod Williams 8c Billie Tsien Anne & Robert N.Wilson

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$2,000-$4,999 Molly F. Ashby & Gerald M.Lodge Bachner &Warren Deborah Bergman Ron &Cheryl Black Jill 8c Sheldon Bonovitz Katharine 8c Robert E.Booth Lois &Marvin Broder Dana Buchman Louise &Edgar M.Cullman Kendra ICrienke Daniel &Allan Daniel David L.Davies &John Weeden Claire & Alfred C. Eckert III Andrew &trill Ralph 0.Esmerian Maxine 8c Stuart Frankel Foundation James Friedlander 8c Elizabeth Irwin The Galerie St. Etienne Audrey B. Heckler Sandra Jaffe ICristina Johnson Penny &Allan Katz Helen 8c Steven Kellogg Lesley &John B. Koegel Phyllis Kossoff Jo Carole & Ronald S. Lauder Taryn & Mark Leavitt Stephanie &Sam Lebowitz Betty &John Levin Deanne D.Levison William M.Lewis Richard Lulcins Linda 8c Christopher Mayer D'Arcy &Dana G.Mead Jr. Susan &Mark C. Mead Merrill Lynch &Co.,Inc. Anne &J.Jefferson Miller Ralph E.Ogden Foundation,Inc. Harold Pote 8c Linda E.Johnson Jeffrey Pressman & Nancy Koffisch Paige Rense Margaret Z. Robson Lois & Richard Rosenthal Robert A. Roth Myra & George E Shaskan Jr. Smart Design Karen 8c David Sobotka David Teiger Jane &David Walentas Lynn & Samuel Waterston Jan Whitlock $1,000-$1,999 Dana &A.Marshall Acuff Bob Alexander Angelo, Gordon &Co. Deborah &James Ash James Asselstine & Bette J. Davis Gayle Perkins Atkins & Charles N. Atkins ICelia &Glenn Bailey Jill &Mickey Baten Robin Bell Lawrence A.8c Claire B.Benenson Virginia &William D.Birch Barbara &James A. Block Judy 8c Bernard Brisldn Marjorie B. Buckley Barbara Bundy Carl Hammer Gallery Sharon Casdin Angela &James Clair Joyce B.Cowin Cullman 8c Kravis,Inc. Susan R. Cullman &John Kirby Peggy & Richard Danziger Abbie Darer Deborah Davenport&Stewart &ender Gary Davenport Ed &Pat DeSear Diamond Baratta Design

Drysdale Inc. Charles P. Durkin Douglas Durst The Echo Design Group,Inc. Essie 8c Sherman K.Edmiston Anne &Joel Ehrenkranz Gloria Einbender Helaine 8c Burton Fendelman Lori &Laurence Fink Marilyn Friedman &Thomas Block Jill Gallagher Bruce Geismar Merle &Barry Ginsburg Susan & Arthur Goldstone Ellin &Baron J. Gordon William R.Grant Susan Green Lewis Greenblatt Irwin &Janet Gusman Cordelia Hamilton Ann &James Harithas Seamus Henchy Catherine & Richard Herbst Stephen M.Hill Marjorie 8c Robert Hirschhorn Sandra &John C. Horvitz Stephen & Carol Huber "Theodore Israel &Laurel Cutler Israel Ned Jalbert Vera &JosefJelinek William Mitchell Jennings Bodil Joergensen Gwen &Eckart Kade Mary Kettaneh Phyllis Kind Mr.8c Mrs. Abraham Krasnoff Cheryl ICrongard Susan &Mark Laracy Lindsey &Bruno LaRocca Susan &Jerry Lauren Alexander Lee Dinah 8c Stephen Lefkowitz Petra 8c Stephen Levin Ammirati Puns Lintas Stephen Loewentheil Phyllis &William Louis-Dreyfus Luise Ross Gallery Macy's East Frank Maresca Michael T. Martin Mary Shaw Love May Family Mrs. Myron L.Mayer Kay & George H.Meyer Michael Rosenfeld Gallery Virginia B. Michel Angie Mills Richard Mishaan Design Randall Morris & Shari Cavin David Muni.

Cynthia &Donald B.Murphy Judy &Bud Newman Margaret &David Nichols Olde Hope Antiques David T. Owsley Elbert H.Parsons AnthonyJ. Petullo Peter Pollak Roberta &Jack Rabin Bunny &Milton S. Rattner Shelley &Donald Rubin

Riccardo Salmona Betty &Paul Schaffer Cipora 0.&Philip C.Schwartz Marvin 8c Donna Schwartz Phyllis &Al Selnick Susan 8cPeter J. Solomon Jennifer &Jonathan Allan Soros Nancy 8c William W.Stahl Ellen &David Stein Elizabeth A. Stern Alan Stillman Donald 8c Rachel Strauber Frank Tosto Dorothy C.Treisman Judith &Bennett Weinstock Leon &Angela Weiss Barbara 8c Gerard C.Wertkin Janis &William Wetsman Janet Winston Rosalie Wood Woodard &Greenstein Michelle &Robert Wyles Rebecca &Jon N.Zoler Jan &Barry L. Zubrow $500-$999 Peg Alston Anthony Annese Jeremy L.Banta Lucy &Joel I. Banker John Barker Serena 8c David Bechtel Judi 8c Barry Beil Lee &Paul Belsky Mr.&Mrs.Thomas L. Bennett Tamara & Bradford Bernstein Priscilla Bijur Helen Bing Leslie &Andrew Blauner Dena L Bock Sandra & Ronald Brady Linda &James H.Brandi Sally &Thatcher M.Brown III Jack Burwell Miriam Cahn Judith F.& Bill Campbell Barbara &Tracy Cate Virginia G. Cave Christie's Richard &Teresa Cicotelli Phyllis Collins Stephen H.Cooper &Karen Gross Courtier &Wilkins Catherine G.Curran John R.Curtis Terry L.Dale &Richard Barry Alex Daniels Judy &Aaron Daniels Sheena 8c David Danziger Joseph &Jackie Del Galdo Valerie & Charles Diker Drake Design Associates,Inc. Larry E.Dumont Deborah &Arnold Dunn Edward Lowe Industries Ray Egan Sharon &Theodore Eisenstat Robert A. Ellison Margot&John L.Ernst Eva 8c Morris Feld Fund Tania &Thomas M.Evans Marci Fagan Robert&Bobbie Falk Thomas K.Figge Gail Furman Richard Gachot Rebecca &Michael S. Gamzon Daniel &Lianna Gantt Judy &Jules Garel Mildred &William L.Gladstone

GREGORY BLACKSTOCK Helen &Peter Strom Goldstein Gomez Associates,Inc. Barbara L Gordon Gail &John Greenberger Eva 8c Leon Greenhill Peter Greenwald ec Nancy Hoffman Susan &John H.Gutfreund Albert Hadley Inc. Duane Hampton John Hathaway Donald Hayes Inge Heckel Hiram 8c Mary Jane Lederach Hershey Arlene 8c Leonard Hochman Lesley &Joseph C. Hoopes Katie Danziger Horowitz& Steven Horowitz Carter Houck Elizabeth 8c Richard R. Howe Ling &Thomas Isenberg Jerry Jeanmard Virginia Joffe Penny Johnston Isobel 8c Harvey Kahn Jaclyn & Gerald Kaminsky Karin Blake Interiors Emily&Leslie Keno Leigh Keno Marcy &Michael Klein Lee Kogan Betty &Arthur Kcnvaloff Stuart ICrinsly Addie &Theodore A. Kurz Richard Thompson Latnmert Stephen Lash Audrey &Henry Levin Nadine &Peter Levy Robert A.Lewis Frances &James Lieu Julie &Carl M.Lindberg Joyce & Edward Linde Bruce Lisman K.Luzak Janet Lyons-Berger Mary P. Mackenzie Eric Maffei &Steven Trombetti Anne 8c Vincent Mai Chriss Mattsson Basile Mavroleon Anne McPherson Dianne &James Meltzer Norma &Pidgeon Metaxax Barry &Wendy Meyer Judith &James Milne Jean Mitchell Keith &Alix Morgan Judy Mulligan &William Blaine Joshua Nash 8c Beth Goldberg Nash Ann 8c Walter Nathan David Nazarian Cyril I. Nelson Ronnie Newman Kenneth R.Page Pat Parsons Rolando Perez & Karin Eriksen Perez Ruth &Leonard Perfido James Pesando Janet Petry Barbara Pollack Wayne Pratt &Mary Beth Keene Mrs.John S. Price Catherine & F.F. Randolph Irene Reichert PaulJ. Reiferson &Julie E. Spivack Julia T. Richie Alyce &Roger Rose Joanna 8c Daniel Rose Marshall Rose Joseph B. Rosenblatt Wolfe Rudman Francis Russo

Raymond Saroff Allison Saxe Linda &Donald Schapiro Elizabeth R. Schloss Anne & Alan Schnitzer Paola &Michael Schulhof Tess &Thomas F. Schutte Dr.&Mrs.David C.Schwartz Alexis Shein J. Edward Shugrue Linda &Raymond Simon Susan &Joel Simon Leslie & Scott Singer Mary Ann &Arthur Siskind Skinner Dolores & Stephen Smith Stephanie Smither Matthew Patrick Smyth 8c Rachel Et. Henry R. Sreck Harvey M.Stone Carol Millsom Studer Rubens Teles &James Adams Barbara &Donald Tober Leonia Van den Heuvel Leslie &Peter S.Warwick Jane 8cPhilip Waterman Jr. Sue Ann &John L. Weinberg Pastor Frederick S. Weiser Mark 8c Mary Westra Sandra &Walter J. Wilkie Evelyn &John Yoder Zankel Fund Linda Zukas Stuart Zweibel&Rene Purse

YY INDONESIAN _LENDER CROW

BILLED

sup...cRow Of MUNE

•

44 4 1I1114 g-12 4 1 COLLARED NOW

GARDE RAIL GALLERY 110 THIRD AVENUE SOULE • SEAM,WA.TEL. 211.621.111511

WWW.GARDE•RAIL.COM

RECENT DONORS TO THE COLLECTIONS Cuesta Benberry Dr. and Mrs.Irwin R. Berman Virginia Cave Kendra and Allan Daniel David L. Davies Ralph Esmerian Eva Fasanella Thomas K.Figge Jacqueline Fowler Lisa SharfGreen & Eric A. Green Lewis Greenblatt Harvey and Isobel Kahn Lois Lockfeld National Children's Museum,Washington, D.C. Cyril Irwin Nelson Dorothea and Leo Rabkin Mx.and Mrs. RE Randolph Aralie Saperstein Elizabeth B.Dichman Smith Maurice C.and Patricia L.Thompson Don Walters and Mary Benisek

cpoteri2.60

4,0 tau

Berenberg Gallery 4 Clarendon Street Boston, MA 02116 t617.536.080o

Nancy Sutherland

www.berenberggallery.com

SUMMER 2005

FOLK ART

95

EPSTEIN/POWELL 66 Grand St., New York, N.Y. 10013 by appointment: 212-226-7316 email: artfolkseverizon.net web: http://allamuchyman.tripod.com • Justin McCarthy (oils and drawings)

• Mose Tolliver

•Victor Joseph Gatto (estate)

•Jesse Aaron

•Rex Clawson (representing)

• Max Romain

•S.L. Jones ('81-'83 drawings)

• and many other folk/outsider artists

• Old Ironsides Pry

INDEX

TO

ADVERTISERS

ADA Historic Deerfield Antiques Show Allan Katz Americana The Ames Gallery Antique Textiles Vintage Fashions Show & Sale Antiques in the Valley Authentic Designs Barn Star Productions Berenberg Gallery Berkshires Visitors Bureau Church Street Art Gallery Craig Farrow David Wheatcroft Antiques Epstein/Powell Fenimore Art Museum Fleisher Oilman Gallery Folk Fest Garde Rail Gallery Gary Snyder Fine Art Giampietro Graves'Country Gallery Hancock Shaker Village Harry N.Abrams,Inc. Hill Gallery

96 SUMMER 2005

Rex Clawson, "White Cat with Gray Stripes" 14" x 17" / marker, pen on paper, 2004

FOLK ART

71 9 16 91 91 93 85 95 65 90 75 3 96 19 11 67 95 87 12 21 64 89 2

The Intuit Show ofFolk and Outsider Art Jackie Radwin Judith Racht Gallery/Outsiders Outside Kentucky Folk Art Center Laura Fisher Lindsay Gallery Mary Michael Shelley New Hampshire Antiques Show Northeast Auctions Olde Hope Antiques,Inc. Princeton University Press Raccoon Creek Antiques Raw Vision Ricco/Maresca Gallery Samuel Herrup Antiques Sidney Gecker American Folk Art Stephen T Anderson Ltd. Thurston Nichols American Antiques Trotta-Bono Urban Country Walters-Benisek Art& Antiques Yard Dog Folk Art

83 Back Cover 86 21 19 14 93 88 Inside Back Cover 1 89 5 23 Inside Front Cover 16 10 69 15 4 17 6 90

AUGUST 5-7, 2005 NEW HAMPSHI WEEKEND AUCTION

IMPORTANT AMERICAN FURNI AND FOLK ART

ECORATIONS

NORTHEAST AUCTIONS by RONALD BOURGEAULT,LLC 93 Pleasant Street Portsmouth, New Hampshire 03801 (603)433-8400 -www.northeastauctions.com PrincipalAuctioneer. Ronald Bourg,eault NH liC. 4 2109

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if

R

JACKIE RADWIN

CHECKERBOARD 19th century. Found in Virginia. Applied frame. Whimsical freehand decoration. 22" x 24".

By appointment• San Antonio, Texas •(210) 824-7711 Visit us at our website www.jackieradwin.com