The Sammie L. Nicely Collection
“I see my collection as a vehicle to empower me as an African American artist. It is important to me to see images that are the same color as me. Through the sharing of my art collection I hope you sense who I am as a person and how I live my life as an artist.” Sammie L. Nicely 2015
About the Sammie L. Nicely Collection Sammie L. Nicely (1947-2015) curated his last exhibition, From an African American Perspective, at ETSU’s Reece Museum from June 15–August 14, 2015. He passed away on May 23, 2015, shortly before the exhibition opened. Many of the works in the Sammie L. Nicely Collection had been included in the From an African American Perspective exhibition.
purchases have taken me to pawn shops, flea markets, yard sales, and galleries. I have also traded for art with fellow artists. Collecting art is very personal to me because many of the artists in my collection are friends with whom I have fond memories of good times together.”
Samuel “Sammie” Louis Nicely was the youngest of seven children. He grew up in Russellville, Tennessee. About his collection he said, “My first recollection of collecting art was about fifty years ago [from 2015] when I was in high school. At the time, I was an Upward Bound student at Carson-Newman College in Jefferson City, Tennessee. I discovered an abandoned, brightllycolored, painterly canvas in the dorm. Visually and emotionally excited by the find, I was hooked on collecting.
After high school, Nicely attended Morristown College and Middle Tennessee State University, where he received his Bachelor of Science degree in Art Education. His graduate studies were in sculpture at The Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
“Mine is a very eclectic art collection. The largest part of the collection is African, African American, and folk art. Along the way, I have collected art from other cultures as well. My art
Nicely’s personal artwork is part of many collections, including but not limited to the TVA, Bellsouth, The National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center, MTSU, Georgia State University, and the Reece Museum at ETSU.
Aundra McCoy Figure 3D, textiles with human hair 18” x 10” x 2”
Aundra McCoy Figure 3D, textiles with human hair 23” x 7” x 2”
Artist Unknown Figure, African 3D, wood 10.5” x 4.5” x 4”
Artist Unknown Mask, Belgian Congo 3D, wood, paint 13” x 9.5” x 5.5”
Artist Unknown Mask, African 3D, painted wood 98” x 18” x 2”
Artist Unknown Mask (fertility), African 3D, painted wood 43” x 11” x 8”
Artist Unknown Figure, African 3D, wood 29” x 4” x 6”
Artist Unknown Mask (double-sided), African 3D, painted wood 21” x 7.5” x 8.5”
Artist Unknown Figures, African 3D, wood 6” x 6” x 3”
Artist Unknown Figure, African 3D, wood, gourd, paint, cord, shells 33” x 14” x 14”
Artist Unknown Figure, African 3D, wood, beaded cloth 41” x 10” x 9”
Artist Unknown Figure, Papua, New Guinea 3D, wood, natural materials 13” x 40” x 5”
John Goslin Head study, 1950 3D, painted plaster 14” x 7” x 7.5”
Bessie Harvey Mask 3D, wood, paint, found objects 17” x 11” x 5”
Artist Unknown Butler table stand 3D, wood, paint 35” x 10” x 15”
Artist Unknown Figure (abstract) 3D, wood mounted to steel 45” x 18” x 16”
Sammie L. Nicely Figure 3D, clay, paint 15” x 9” x 7”
Artist Unknown Chair 3D, wood, bottles 66” x 28” x 25”
Liberty Tshuma Figure, African 3D, stone 16” x 7.5” x 5”
Chemendu Jemali Mask 3D, marble 22” x 15” x 16”
Calvin Nicely Figure 3D, blown glass 13” x 4.5” x 4.5”
Calvin Nicely Figure 3D, blown glass 19” x 5.5” x 5.5”
Tadashi Torii Figure 3D, blown glass 21.5” x 9” x 9”
Artist Unknown Figure 3D, blown glass 30” x 7” x 4.5”
Bill Capshaw Clay Pot (raku) 3D, ceramic 8” x 10” x 10”
James Few Clay Pot 3D, ceramic 25” x 12.5” x 12.5”
Phillip Shivell Bowl (wood-fired) 3D, ceramic 4” x 14” x 15”
Curtis Tucker Clay Pot 3D, ceramic 13” x 11” x 11”
Richard Jolley / Sammie Nicely Bowl 3D, blown glass 10” x 10” x 10”
Lonnie Holley Sculpture (face within a face) 2D, wire 16” x 16”
Charles R. Crossley Untitled 2D, mixed media on board 24” x 21”
Preston Sampson Pookie 2D, mixed media on handmade paper 39” x 30”
Priscilla Cassidy Supper Time, 1992 2D, oil on board 20.5” x 26”
Mose Tolliver Untitled 2D, paint on board 19.7” x 11”
Aziz Diagne Untitled 2D, intaglio print 26.5” x 32”
Stephanie Jackson Yardbird 2D, mixed media 27” x 21”
Judy Chamberlain Untitled 2D, ceramic (raku) 18” x 23.5”
Deborah Shedrick Untitled 2D, oil on canvas 24” x 24”
Emani Silva Untitled 2D, acrylic 31” x 31”
E. Foster Woman with Three Children 2D, oil on canvas 37” x 30”
Samuel L. Dunson, Jr. See No Evil 2D, oil on canvas 12” x 10”
John Preble Mystery of Hope, 1992 2D, oil on canvas 20.75” x 17.5”
Barbara Bullock Art/Circus Combo, 1989 2D, oil on canvas 12” x 24.25”
R. Robinson Portrait of Sammie L. Nicely 2D, oil on canvas 29” x 22”
Willie Willie Untitled 2D, mixed media 21.5” x 21.5”
Willie Willie Untitled 2D, acrylic on wood 26” x 11”
Willie Willie Untitled 2D, painted metal 40” x 31”
Nancy McCrary Untitled 2D, acrylic on canvas 48” x 24”
Sammie L. Nicely Mask 3D, clay, mounted and signed on tin 13” x 6.75” x 3.25” (mask dimensions)
Sammie L. Nicely Mask 3D, clay, mounted and signed on tin 12” x 8.25” x 3” (mask dimensions)
Acknowledgements The Reece Museum staff gratefully acknowledge:
at East Tennessee State University: College of Arts and Sciences Department of Appalachian Studies Center of Excellence for Appalachian Studies and Services University Relations and more broadly, a special thank you to: The family and friends of Sammie L. Nicely and The executors of the Sammie L. Nicely Estate