Lot 100B
Jim Sudduth (American, 1910-2007). "Cotton Wagon and People in Cotton Field" - house paint or acrylic on plywood, ca. 1980s. Hand signed in pencil over the white cotton in the wagon cart. A fascinating painting by self-taught master of southern art, Jim Sudduth (also known as Jimmy Lee Sudduth). Aptly titled "Cotton Wagon and People in Cotton Field" this painting features six fieldworkers picking cotton, each person rendered in profile, and a large wagon filled with white cotton behind them. Sudduth's artworks were inspired by the life he lived as an African American in the rural South, and he painted this scene with his signature expressive style and vibrant color palette. Shades of hot pink, kelly green, buttercup yellow, and snow white work in concert to present this humble view of the American South. An outsider artist, Sudduth began by painting with his fingers, because as he stated "they never wore out". He also experimented with interesting binders such as sugar and syrup. Interestingly, in this composition, some kind of sandy substance was mixed with pigment to create a gritty texture on the cart wheels as well as the figures' faces. A mesmerizing scene painted on found plywood by this early master of southern art, set in an unfinished wooden frame that complements it perfectly. Size: 32" L x 48" W (81.3 cm x 121.9 cm) Size of frame: 35.3" L x 51" W (89.7 cm x 129.5 cm)
Jim "Jimmy Lee" Sudduth was raised on farm in Caines Ridge, Alabama. His interest in creating art began during childhood. Jimmy Lee enjoyed making hand-carved dolls and drawing on tree trunks or in the dirt. He continued to develop his artistic expression by finger painting on found objects - doors, signs, and plywood boards - creating pigments from plants and the earth, using house paint, and mixing in unusual binding agents like sugar and syrup. Also a blues musician, he played harmonica and banjo.
Sudduth's works have been exhibited and collected by many museums such as the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the High Museum of Art, the Corcoran Gallery, and the Birmingham Museum of Art. Among numerous honors, Sudduth served as an artist-in-residence at the New Orleans Museum of Art, appeared on "60 Minutes" and the "Today Show", and was invited to exhibit his art and play harmonica at the Smithsonian Institution's Bicentennial Festival of American Folk Life. In 2005, the Birmingham Museum of Art honored the artist with a solo exhibition, and Sudduth's painting entitled, "Self Portrait with Banjo" is exhibited at the Smithsonian Luce Foundation Center.
Provenance: J Compton Gallery, Wimberley, Texas, USA
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#169757
- Condition: Hand signed in pencil by the artist over the white cotton in the wagon cart. "Robert / Cotton Wagon and People in Cotton Field" handwritten on verso. Two tiny metal pins protrude from the back to the front of painting on the upper right corner, but these are difficult to see and the painting is in overall very good condition.
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