104:, on March 5, 1892. His father was formerly enslaved, and was sold away from his mother by the age of four. Pierce began woodcarving at the age of seven, when his father gave him his first pocketknife. His uncle, Lewis Wallace, taught him how to carve more complex pieces. Pierce would give away his carvings to other children at his school. As a teenager, Pierce decided he did not want to work as a farmer like his father. He began to hang out at the local barbershop, and this is where he found another passion of his. In 1908, he began barbering as a trade, eventually becoming a renowned barber. A spiritual man, he earned a
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Many of Pierce's carving were done for his wives. In the 1920s, Pierce made an entire zoo of wood carved animals for his wife, Cornelia. Each animal represented a different story, sometimes referencing the beasts of
Genesis, or animals from folktales of his youth. Pierce's favorite work of his own
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Pierce married his first wife, Zetta Palm, and had a son with her. Palm died during the birth of their son. In
September 1923, Pierce would marry Cornelia Houeston, his second wife. At the age of 61, Houeston died of cancer in 1948. In 1949, Pierce would marry his third and final wife, Estelle
88:(1892–1984) was a 20th-century wood carver. He began carving at a young age using a pocket knife. He first started carving animals because of his prior life of growing up on a farm. Pierce was honored in 1982 with a
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was the first type of carving Pierce ever made differing from his typical small sculptures. He would go on to make many more carvings similar to the
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Pierce is generally regarded and commemorated as one of the greatest and most influential woodcarvers from within the past few centuries.
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Pierce's work was discovered by the mainstream art world in the early 1970s, and was included in exhibitions at galleries such as the
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Pierce was born to a formerly enslaved father. His uncle, Lewis
Wallace, taught him how to develop his talent for woodcarving.
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In 1973, Pierce won first prize in the
International Meeting of Naive Art in Zagreb, Yugoslavia. He was a recipient of a 1982
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has over 300 pieces of his work. Much of Pierce's work and influence was not appreciated until after his death.
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129:, quite literally a large wooden book that Pierce carved into. The book portrayed the story of Jesus. The
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Bournea, Chris (September 12, 2012). "'Essential Elijah Pierce' focus of museum's new exhibit".
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407:"'Every Piece I Carve Is A Message': Elijah Pierce Aimed To Do God's Work In Wood"
531:"Elijah Pierce, one of nation's great woodcarvers, dead at 92". UPI. May 8, 1984.
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preacher's license in 1920. He left the South and worked itinerantly across the
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279:"Enter the World of Elijah Pierce at Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia"
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In 1991, he was inducted into the
National Barber Museum Hall of Fame.
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The Martin Luther King Jr. Performing and
Cultural Arts Complex in
298:"Your life is a book: the artistic legacy of Elijah Pierce".
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Pierce was the youngest son in his family, born on a farm in
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Lloyd, Timothy (July 1, 1995). "Elijah Pierce, woodcarver".
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for his art and influence in the woodcarving community.
432:""Father Time", Jill and Sheldon Bonovitz Collection"
193:, named the Elijah Pierce Gallery in his honor. The
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463:. National Endowment for the Arts. Archived from
486:"Artists to commemorate life of Elijah Pierce".
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137:, each with its own story and universal theme.
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382:The National Barber Museum and Hall of Fame
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219:in Columbus, of an apparent heart attack.
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457:"NEA National Heritage Fellowships 1982"
37:Sculpture of Pierce in downtown Columbus
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161:. His work is in the collection of the
633:20th-century African-American artists
518:Barber who carved world of his dreams
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613:National Heritage Fellowship winners
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405:Stamberg, Susan (October 1, 2020).
628:20th-century American male artists
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319:Encyclopedia of American Folk Art
608:People from Baldwyn, Mississippi
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341:The Journal of American Folklore
16:American wood carver (1892–1984)
623:20th-century American sculptors
215:Pierce died on May 7, 1984, at
178:National Endowment for the Arts
155:National Museum of American Art
116:, in 1923 to work as a barber.
321:. Routledge. pp. 436–437.
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546:. May 10, 1984. p. B14.
174:National Heritage Fellowship
90:National Heritage Fellowship
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603:Sculptors from Mississippi
598:African-American sculptors
436:Philadelphia Museum of Art
167:Philadelphia Museum of Art
544:The Philadelphia Enquirer
520:. Cleveland Plain Dealer.
254:"Elijah Pierce Biography"
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317:Wertkin, Gerard (2003).
229:Elijah Pierce Properties
163:American Folk Art Museum
618:American male sculptors
217:St. Anthony's Hospital
195:Columbus Museum of Art
516:Litt, Steven (1993).
467:on September 29, 2020
593:American woodcarvers
569:at Wikimedia Commons
542:"Deaths elsewhere".
378:"1991 Elijah Pierce"
151:Phyllis Kind Gallery
112:valley, settling in
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147:Krannert Art Museum
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70:(1984-05-07)
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588:1984 deaths
583:1892 births
387:January 28,
263:November 3,
68:May 7, 1984
577:Categories
416:October 7,
235:References
157:, and the
96:Early life
49:1892-03-05
441:March 26,
411:NPR News
223:See also
125:was the
120:Artistry
209:Green.
106:Baptist
361:541891
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284:Forbes
149:, the
78:, U.S.
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357:JSTOR
473:2020
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389:2023
265:2016
65:Died
43:Born
349:doi
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
