Clementine Hunter
I based this drawing on a painting by self-taught artist Clementine Hunter (1886-1988). All of the paintings of hers I’ve seen are so special and interesting. Picking cotton was a scene she depicted many times in her prolific career. Growing up a farm laborer in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, Hunter lived much of her life at Melrose Plantation where she eventually became a cook and housekeeper. Hunter never learned to read or write, but managed to create thousands of paintings. She also quilted, painted murals, still lifes, abstract works and developed her own experimental techniques. A widowed mother, she worked full-time, raised her children and painted at night. In the 1940s, she began selling her artworks for 25 cents each, and soon gained recognition. Her paintings went on to be worth thousands of dollars during her lifetime. She is in the collections of museums including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, American Folk Art Museum, and the National Museum of Women in the Arts.
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Illustration inspired by: Clementine Hunter (1886/87-1988). 1950. Cotton Pickin'. Place: American Folk Art Museum, Gift of Gleaves Rhodes. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AAFOLKAIG_10313142463.