The Folk Art Society of America Auction is Officially Open!

So what are you waiting for?…Click here to “Bid Now!”

R.A. Miller - Lord Love You - Photo FASA

The Folk Art Society of America announces their annual online auction.  Bid or donate items to support The Folk Art Society of America and the publication of The Folk Art Messenger, art donations to museums and other related activities.  The online auction ends September 20, 2010, and is continued with a live auction on September 25, 2010, at the 23^rd annual Folk Art Society of America conference in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Whether you’re looking for something unique for yourself, searching for a gift for a special someone, or looking to add a little adventure to your life, you’re sure to find something in our auction.  Tell Your Friends. The success of this online auction depends on spreading the word to as many people as possible. We need your help. Please, click here to “Refer a Friend” and encourage them to participate so they don’t miss a single moment of the fun and excitement.

Donate Items!  It is not too late to donate items to the auction. Click here to donate.

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Chris E. Lewallen – Success Without Intention

Chris E. Lewallen - Fish - Photo Credit LiveAuctioneers.com

A Gainsville, Georgia, paramedic by day and a painter by heart.  Chris Lewallen has painted for as long as he remembers, but he never dreamed of what would come from this passion.  Using bright enamel paint colors on tin and wood, as well as other found objects he deems worthy, he creates his pieces of art focusing mostly on animals as his subject matter.  In the early 1990’s Chris began selling his work.  At the time the relationships he had with folk artists R.A. Miller and Rev. Howard Finster gave him the encouragement he needed to start traveling the art festival circuit.  Chris hasn’t looked back...

Chris E. Lewallen-Lady Liberty-Photo Credit LiveAuctioneers.com

What started as minor repairs for his Hot Wheels and Tonka trucks has turned into a regional phenomenon that boggles the mind of Gainesville artist Chris Lewallen.

“My bother and I used to paint our toys,” said Lewallen. That is how it all began.

Over the course of 20 or so years, Lewallen developed a passion for painting that extended well beyond Hot Wheels.

Self taught, Lewallen hasn’t given much thought to what he does other than it makes him happy.

“Through the years I drew pictures and I’ve always liked bright colors,” he said.

One day while walking through the woods, Lewallen stumbled on a twisted piece of vine that, in his mind, resembled a snake.

Chris E. Lewallen - Yellow Bird - Photo Credit LiveAuctioneers.com

He took the vine back and used the simple household paints he had always used to brightly decorate the snake with various scenes.

The snake, given as a gift, became so popular he had to paint more.

And so the story goes.

Like a domino effect, Lewallen’s folksy paintings both on canvas and odd objects began to appear first around town, and then the region.

Before he knew it, his artwork was being sought after nationwide.  Full story here.

Chris E. Lewallen - Snake - Photo Credit LiveAuctioneers.com

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Willie Tarver - Photo Courtesy Mike's Art Truck

Willie Tarver 1932-2010

Rest in Peace

On August 6, 2010, at the age of 78, artist Willie Tarver passed away at his home in Wadley, Georgia. Only a few months prior, he had been diagnosed with lung cancer, apparently the result of years of breathing smoke both from welding and from cigarettes. The man who crafted many tombstones in the local cemetery chose not to have a burial. Instead his ashes will be incorporated into his art environment. Along with his wonderful wife Mae, his family, friends, and fans, he leaves behind a large body of work.

The second annual Lake Norman Folk Art Festival in Sherrills Ford, North Carolina, presented by the Hickory Museum of Art, will take place at 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, October 2, at 4689 Giles Avenue. Admission and parking are free and open to the public.

Artist Tammy Leigh Brooks with one of her Roosters

More than 25 folk artists from North Carolina and surrounding states will offer their work for sale. In addition, there will be special hands-on activities for children, live bluegrass music and art-making demonstrations.

Artists who have been accepted to this juried show and sale include the following: Tammy Leigh Brooks, Cher Shaffer, Artrageousfolk/Denny Maloney, Sarah Rakes, Jeff Young, Mike Esslinger, Wanda Clark, Harriet McGee, Robert Oren Eades, S&S Workshop, Jack and Delma Turner, Gary Mitchell, Keesha Freeman Meroney, Moni Hill, Barbara Miller, J&M Helton Pottery, Tim & Lisa Kluttz, Kristen Feighery, Kathy Richards, Larry Kepley, Chameleon Clayworks, Primitive Folks/John Sperry, Elise Starnes, A.V. Smith Pottery, Theresa Gloster and Bearfoot Chainsaw Carving.

Once by Artist Keesha Freeman Meroney

“The Hickory Museum of Art has a large permanent collection of contemporary Southern folk art,” said Lisë Swensson, the museum’s executive director. “Last year, we decided to present this vibrant form of art through the Lake Norman Folk Art Festival. Following a highly successful first year, the festival is returning this year to Sherrills Ford.”

The event will be held on a private, lakefront lot owned by Myra and Darwin Smith.
The Hickory Museum of Art invites the public to attend this free, family-friendly event near Charlotte, NC.

More information about the artists and festival can be found at LakeNormanFolkArtFestival.com along with directions to the event.

The Lake Norman Folk Art Festival is made possible by the generosity of the following sponsors: Alex Lee, Inc.; Catawba Valley Medical Center; The Gardner Group; Newport Properties, Joanie Gardner, Broker; Our State magazine; Rink Media; Hickory Museum of Art Board of Trustees; Myra and Darwin Smith; GDS; Duke Energy; Lenoir-Rhyne University and Don Phelps. For information about sponsorship opportunities, check the Web site or contact the Hickory Museum of Art.

The Hickory Museum of Art is a United Arts Council of Catawba County Funded Affiliate and is located in the “SALT Block” Arts & Science Center of the Catawba Valley, 243 3rd Avenue NE. Regular hours of operation are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 AM – 4 PM and Sundays from 1 – 4 PM. Admission is free everyday and families are welcome. For additional information, call 828-327-8576 or go to www.HickoryArt.org.

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-Alastair Bradley Martin and the Guennol Collection at Auction-

He was a passionate collector.  Mr. Alastair Bradley Martin’s collection will be sold at Christie’s in New York on September 29, 2010.  Read about the man and about just what makes his Guennol Collection so impressive.

CARVED, PAINTED AND POLYCHROM-DECORATED PINE TREE OF LIFE- Photo Credit Christie's

“The true collector, like the artist, is an impassioned creator.” - Alastair Bradley Martin

For most of his 94 years, Alastair Bradley Martin was justly described as a most passionate collector – astute, inspired and individual in his tastes. A predilection for collecting began with stamps, books, rifles and cars but swiftly expanded to embrace vast new horizons, and eventually became his life’s mission. For, as Martin said, ‘if a man owns a collection, the collection owns him’. The result of his devoted efforts continues to astound scholars, collectors, curators and dealers throughout the world.

A GREATER YELLOWLEG A. Elmer Crowell, East Harwich, Massachusetts, circa 1930 - Photo Credit Christie's

Martin shared his personal philosophy on collecting at every opportunity. He and his wife Edith, a notable needlewoman in her own right, pursued two main goals; a relentless quest for exceptional objects, and an interest in a vast array of cultures. He understood that these manifestations of the art of man communicated across time and space to encapsulate the history of artistic traditions. As he liked to say,‘fishing in many waters rather than in a single pond is not only more intriguing, it may also improve the skill of the angler. ’Although his aesthetic view and collecting values may be unfashionable in the academic art world today, they have helped to expand the boundaries of that world. His was an all-encompassing approach that was not outwardly intellectual but instinctive, ‘a response from one’s subconscious’. He was, quite simply, drawn to the exoticism and romance of ‘things’, being wont to describe collecting in a broad realm as an ‘exquisite chase’.

A HESSIAN SOLDIER CARVED AND PAINTED WHIRLIGIG American, 19th century - Photo Credit Christie's

Hence, the Guennol Collection came into being. Guennol means ‘martin’ (as in the bird) in Welsh, and Wales had special meaning for the couple who spent their honeymoon there.True to their mission, the quality and breadth of this assemblage is truly astounding, encompassing American Folk Art, Ancient Egyptian, Near Eastern, Medieval, and Asian, just to name a few. Both the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Brooklyn Museum of Art staged dedicated exhibitions (in 1990 and 2000, respectively) and a total of three hardbound catalogues were produced.  Full story…

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Nicholas Vasilieff, The Green Cloth, 1950 - Photo Credit Sheldon Museum of Art

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Sheldon Museum of Art  has a new exhibit open to the public until October 17, 2010.  The exhibit is curated by Sheldon Director Emeritus, Norman Geske.  The exhibition is composed of pieces from the Sheldon’s permanent collection, loans and a selection of works by local Lincoln artist Jeffrey Randall.  The museum is open free to the public during regular hours of opperation.

Parallel Starts: Outside Art Inside Collections’ opens at Sheldon

Office of University Communications
University of Nebraska–Lincoln

WHERE: Sheldon Museum of Art at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus, 12th and R Streets

“Parallel Starts: Outsider Art Inside Collections,” opening Aug. 6 at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Sheldon Museum of Art, looks at the challenge of defining outsider art and how its inclusion in museum collections blurs traditional art historical definitions.

The exhibition is drawn from the Sheldon ’s permanent collection, loans and a selection of works by Jeffrey Randall, a Lincoln artist. Curated by Norman Geske, Sheldon director emeritus, the show opens with a First Friday public reception 5-7 p.m. Aug. 6.

The exhibition features works from Jean Dubuffet, Howard Finster, Albert York, John Kane, David Burlyuk and Samuel Colwell Banker, among others. Randall’s work, on loan from the Museum of Nebraska Art in Kearney, private collections, and the artist, is inspired by his earliest memories, all of art making.  Read more…

For more information about the exhibit, click here.

12th and R Streets on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus – Click for directions.

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Everhart Museum’s New Exhibition – For Every Season: Folk Art in Daily Life and Celebration

Girl in Red Dress - Photo Courtesy Everhart Museum

The Everhart Museum, the largest general museum in Northeastern Pennsylvania-located in Scranton, opens a new exhibit, For Every Season: Folk Art in Daily Life and Celebration on September 24, 2010 and continuing on display through December 31, 2010.

For Every Season presents a new interpretation of the Everhart Museum’s premiere Folk Art collection and features over 50 museum objects alongside those borrowed from the community. In this exclusive exhibit, the universal stages of life are examined by looking at the rich assortment of hand-crafted objects representing America’s cultural heritage, both past and present. For example, 18th & 19th-century Pennsylvania Germans frequently commemorated family events with fraktur or decorated manuscripts such as Taufscheine (birth and baptismal certificates) and celebrated marriage with gifts of personalized bride boxes and dower chests to young women. During the 19th century, craftspeople and business proprietors used elaborately carved or painted signs to advertise their goods and services. Young women often showcased their artistic skills in honor of deceased loved ones by creating painted, embroidered, and woven hair mourning art. Folk paintings, particularly portraits, were commissioned to celebrate family, commemorate personal achievement, and sometimes to honor those loved ones who had passed away.

Hair Wreath-Photo Courtesy Everhart Museum

Today, Northeast Pennsylvania is home to dozens of diverse groups of European, African, and Asian immigrants who celebrate important rites of passage with their distinctive traditions and folk art objects. For Every Season provides a unique opportunity to interface with contemporary immigrant communities found throughout our region, interpreting their folk art and life traditions. Lenders to the exhibit include the Bhutanese-Nepali Community of Scranton, Golden Generation Retreat Center, the Lackawanna Historical Society, and Temple Hesed, as well as individuals and private collectors.

–Financial assistance for creating this exhibit is provided by Gertrude Hawk Chocolates, Inc., the Lackawanna Heritage Valley Authority, and PNC Bank.–

The Everhart Museum is open Monday, Thursday and Friday, Noon to 4:00 p.m.; Saturday,10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; and Sunday Noon to 5:00 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for students, $2 for children ages 6-12 years old, and free for children under age 6 and for Everhart Museum members. For more information, contact the museum at 570-346-7186 or email general.information@everhart-museum.org.

1901 Mulberry Street

Scranton, PA  18501

About the Everhart Museum: Founded in 1908, the Everhart Museum of Natural History, Science & Art is the largest general museum in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The Everhart Museum, located in Nay Aug Park in Scranton, is a not-for-profit institution dedicated to the collection, care and display of a diverse array of artifacts, including natural history, science and fine arts. Through our exhibits and programs, the Everhart Museum has become an invaluable regional resource for educational and cultural opportunities. General support for the museum is received from the Lackawanna County Office of Education & Culture, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and the City of Scranton. For more information on the museum visit our website at www.everhart-museum.org or contact us at 570-346-7186.

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Bill Traylor - Image Credit Slotin Folk Art

Folk Fest 2010!

The artists, tons of top notch galleries and dealers, Steve and Amy Slotin, and all you folk art “fans” – need we, at the Home of Folk Art, say more?  It is all happening this Friday – Sunday, August 20-22, 2010 at the North Atlanta Trade Center in Norcross, Georgia.  The tickets are cheap, the venue is cool, and the art is hot!  With all those great galleries and dealers selling pieces of folk art to fit everyones budget and collecting level – the 17th Annual Folk Fest is a sure bet!   Plus, don’t forget, the Friday night “Meet-the-Artists” Party and Show happening from 5-10 p.m.

But, don’t take our word for it – see what Atlanta INTown has to say about it.

Folk Fest 2010 is Aug. 20-22

Folk Fest – billed as “The World’s Greatest Self-Taught Art Show and Sale” – will celebrate 17 years in Atlanta with a three-day show slated for Aug. 20-22 at the North Atlanta Trade Center in Norcross. Nearly 100 galleries and dealers will exhibit at the air conditioned, 85,000-square-foot venue. Norcross is located north of Atlanta, off exit 101 of I-85.

Visitors will pour into Georgia from all around the country to see what’s hot in the world of folk art. Folk Fest is where museums, prominent galleries, serious collectors and major art publications make their new discoveries. Attendees – ranging from housewives to Hollywood producers – will find items priced from a $5 starter piece to a $50,000 museum masterpiece.  Full story here -

For more information on Folk Fest – visit SlotinFolkArt.com.

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Howard Finster - Photo Credit Roger and Scott Sayre

Rev. Howard Finster finds a New Resting Place

After spending the last nine years in the Silver Hill Baptist Church Cemetery in Chattooga County, Georgia, Howard Finster’s body was unearthed and moved Saturday, August 7, 2010, reports the Summerville Georgia News.  His new resting place is located in Head Springs Cemetery, Valley Head, Alabama, along with his father and mother as well as other family members and relatives, according to his daughter Thelma Bradshaw.

Finster, who passed away in Oct. 2001, is a nationally known folk artist whose works are on exhibit in the Smithsonian, the High Museum and others.

The folk artist was also clear in making his burial arrangements, Ms. Bradshaw said.  “He wrote this letter Jan. 2, 1997. It says, ‘I, Howard Finster, make my last burial request, to be buried by my wife Pauline who has been so great to me all these years. I want the honor to be buried with her, anywhere she chooses is fine to me.’”  Full story here-

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American Folk Art Museum – Facing Their Debt Troubles

According to the New York Times the American Folk Art Museum is attempting to sort through its troubles and find a solution that will keep them financially afloat.  Apparently, both the company that insured the museum’s bonds and the museum feel they will be able to find a solution to their debt problem.  The negotiations are currently ongoing.

The American Folk Art Museum, which has struggled financially almost since the day it opened the doors of its new building in 2001, is now facing a moment of reckoning.

Six months after disclosing that it could no longer make payments on the $32 million it borrowed through a bond issue to finance the building, the museum is still in protracted negotiations to restructure its debt with the company that insured its bonds.  Full NY Times article here-

To be directed to the American Folk Art Museum website to donate - click here.

Your gift to the Annual Fund makes the the museum’s educational programs, exhibitions, and conservation of the collection possible. If received by September 15, 2010, your contribution to the museum will be matched dollar for dollar.

The Home of Folk Art says-”Sign up for our email alert that will let you know when a new story is posted. We promise we won’t spam you, and we promise we won’t pass along your email address to spammers. Look for the “subscribe” tab in the right hand column or click the links here and choose the RSS Feed or email notification.”