Artist:
Clementine Hunter
(1886 - 1988)
Untitled (Zinnia Bouquet)
Medium: Oil on canvas board
Date: ca. 1970
Dimensions:
24 × 18 in. (61 × 45.7 cm)
Accession number: 2020.2
Copyright: © artist, artist's estate, or other rights holders
Label Copy:
A self-taught artist, Clementine Hunter began pursuing her talent as a painter after the age of 50. She spent most of her life as a field hand and cook at Melrose Plantation, a cotton farm in Louisiana, which was also an artist colony in the 1930s, giving her access to paint and materials. Hunter painted narrative scenes of cotton picking, festive weddings, dancing, and church going, and became known for her bold paintings of flowers, particularly zinnias. The richly textured surface and vivid color of this zinnia bouquet are representative of Hunter’s overall style in the folk art tradition.
A self-taught artist, Clementine Hunter began pursuing her talent as a painter after the age of 50. She spent most of her life as a field hand and cook at Melrose Plantation, a cotton farm in Louisiana, which was also an artist colony in the 1930s, giving her access to paint and materials. Hunter painted narrative scenes of cotton picking, festive weddings, dancing, and church going, and became known for her bold paintings of flowers, particularly zinnias. The richly textured surface and vivid color of this zinnia bouquet are representative of Hunter’s overall style in the folk art tradition.
Curatorial RemarksA self-taught African American artist who spent most of her life as a field hand and cook on a cotton plantation, Clementine Hunter began pursuing her talent as a painter after the age of 50. Melrose Plantation in Louisiana, where Hunter worked, was also an artist colony in the 1930s, giving her occasional access to paint and materials. When her works were exhibited at Northwestern State College of Louisiana in 1955, segregation laws prevented her entering the gallery. She eventually gained fame in the 1970s for her brilliantly colored works depicting plantation life painted from memory.
In addition to narrative scenes of cotton picking, festive weddings, dancing and church going, she became known for her bold paintings of flowers, particularly zinnias. The richly textured surface and bright vivid color of this zinnia bouquet are representative of the artist’s overall style in the folk art tradition.
In addition to narrative scenes of cotton picking, festive weddings, dancing and church going, she became known for her bold paintings of flowers, particularly zinnias. The richly textured surface and bright vivid color of this zinnia bouquet are representative of the artist’s overall style in the folk art tradition.
On view