William Edmondson

William Edmonson was born in 1874 in Tennessee, a son of recently freed slaves -- he worked odd jobs from janitor, fireman, and hospital orderly until the age of 58 when began acting on his visions of figurative sculptures (see below). Using discarded blocks of limestone he carved his works of art that he referred to as miracles -- using chisels he made out of old railroad spikes no less. Five years later he had a solo show at the MoMa, just two years after Picasso was first shown there. Deep in the Jim Crow era, even once recognized, his art was still referred to as primitive or naïve. Regardless, his beautiful and miraculous works live on -- they are strong, soulful, and have both an ancient and modern quality of beauty to them.

Edmonson's figures often included revered biblical figures and angles but also notably other revered figures he lovingly immortalized the everyday working-class people around him, such as neighborhood schoolteachers, nurses, and church ladies -- as well as birds, rabbits, and squirrels. What a legend.