The Secret Paintings of Clementine Hunter

Garden Cinderella Goes to the Smithsonian
Celebrated southern folk artist (Clemen-teen) Hunter
loved Zinnias, so maybe it is fitting that she also be known as the name of her favorite flower…Garden Cinderella.

A fitting name perhaps as the details of her life unfolds…

Born sometime in the late 1880s, the self-taught painter worked as a servant on a plantation where she also lived.

Hunter had little formal schooling and could not read or write. But Hunter later began charging visitors pennies to visit her dwelling and view her exhibits, and gradually became known to the public. Hunter lived to be over 100 years of age (1988).

A biography co-authored by Professor Tom Whitehead, who knew her personally, documents her remarkable life and achievements, and the impact her paintings had in the art world. Hunter’s art was so popular, it triggered a crime ring and federal indictments.

And although Hunter once turned down then-President Jimmy Carter’s invitation to travel to the White House, her art will now make the journey to a permanent home in  Washington, DC. According to professor Whitehead,
a collection of six of her paintings has now been donated to the Smithsonian.

Red Zinna

Cheers!

References

Clementine Hunter Artist.com
Note: Blog maintained by gentlemen
raised on the plantation
and knew the artist
http://clementinehunterartist.com/

LSU.edu
“Clementine Hunter” Offers First Comprehensive Biography of Self-Taught Artist
Authors Reveal Louisiana Painter’s Impact on Modern Art World,
Detail Decades-Long Forgery Operation
http://tinyurl.com/qevjzh9

National Museum of African American History and Culture,
19th division of the Smithsonian Institution.
http://www.nmaahcproject.com/

Nader’s Gallery.com
Clementine Hunter Bio
httFakes, Finds, and the Story of Clementine Hunter