Creator Record
Metadata
Name |
Bessie Harvey |
Other names |
Bessie Ruth White |
Dates & places of birth and death |
Oct 11, 1929 · Dallas, Georgia Aug 12, 1994 · Alcoa, Tennessee |
Nationality |
American |
Occupation |
Excerpts of Bessie Harvey's biography from "Souls Grown Deep like the Rivers": "Bessie Harvey was born in Dallas, Georgia. One of ten children, her upbringing was challenging, and at the age of twenty she relocated to rural Tennessee." Bessie made dolls in her childhood, but did not pursue making art until the 1970s. "[She] began seeing faces in the natural world around her. She realized that seeing them was a gift from God, who taught her how to bring the faces out of wood into works of art: 'I am the sculptress that God has taught me to be.'" "Harvey was proud of her African heritage and studied traditional African art and techniques, incorporating them into her work. She rejected the suggestion that her artworks were related to Voodoo, at one point even burning some anthropomorphic figures to avoid this association." "In the latter decades of her life, Harvey's sculptures began to recieve recognition. She travelled to New Orleans and New Jersey where she was included in group shows." Today her work "is held in collections including those of the National Gallery of Art, Washington DC and the Baltimore Museum of Art." This biography was written by Rebecca Bray for "Souls Grown Deep like the Rivers: Black Artists from the American South". |
Notes |
Bessie Harvey's work commands a premium in value and attention. Her work has been viewed in over 50 exhibitions including the American Folk Art Museum in New York and the Knoxville Museum of Art. |
Publications |
Featured artist in the publication "Souls Grown Deep like the Rivers: Black Artists from the American South", published by the Royal Academy of Arts. |
Relationships |
Artist represented in original Sammie L. Nicely Collection bequest Husband, Charles Harvey. Divorced 1968. Harvey had 11 children by age 25. |
Places of residence |
1929: Dallas, Georgia 1943: Buena Vista, Georgia 1968: Alcoa, Tennessee |
Role |
Sculptor |
Education |
self taught |
Related Records
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1989.005 - Sculpture
"Little Mama" is an assemblage (a type of sculpture that introduces pre-existing, non-art objects into an art context) of found objects. The figure is made from black painted root and depicts a Black woman wearing a patchwork fabric skirt. Materials assembled on the figure include: two snail shells on top of the head; a jeweled gold brooch place on her forehead; eyes made from small cypraea shell; a mouth featuring pearl-like beads, a chain neckl...
Record Type: Object
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2021.005.038 - Sculpture
This 3D sculptural mask is made with a rough chunk of wood with lots of texture, potentially pine as it is not too heavy. Minimally shaped, the artist seems to have added definition to existing formations to define the face, working with the wood's grain and natural shape. The texture around the bottom calls to mind a rough chin, with the suggestion of a beard. A hollow channel through the center of the forehead travels down to two holes drilled ...
Record Type: Object
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2021.009 - Sculpture
This wooden carving by Bessie Harvey is called "Wait." It depicts a person's face with a yellow hat or head covering spotted with black dots. The eyes are white ovals bisected by a brown line and ringed with green. The mouth is open with a white tooth showing under the top lip. The sculpture sits on a circular wooden base, a slice of wood from a tree or branch. The form is roughly a 3-dimensional Y with the bottom column being the person's fac...
Record Type: Object
