Clementine Hunter (1886-1988) was a self-taught Black folk artist who lived and worked on Melrose Plantation in Louisiana.
She grew up on the plantation as an agricultural laborer, picking cotton and pecans, never learning how to read or write. In her thirties, Hunter began working at the main house as a cook and housekeeper for Cammie Henry, the owner of the plantation. Cammie, an avid patron of the arts and literature, turned the plantation into an artist colony and a hub for artistic expression, inviting a variety of writers and painters to vacation and work there for extended periods of time. Clementine observed the visitors and developed a hobby of painting in her spare time with discarded paint tubes and cardboard left over from the artists. A memory painter, she painted scenes from everyday plantation life and documented the black Cane River Valley experience. Her work colorfully depicts important events like funerals, baptisms, weddings and scenes of plantation labor. She painted everyday, producing nearly 10,000 works in her lifetime. In the early days, she began selling her works for 25 cents to whoever frequented the plantation, and eventually gained a following of supporters who brought her painting supplies so she could keep going. One supporter, Tom Whitehead - now the renowned expert of her work - wrote a biography on the artist and helped her achieve great recognition, along with a number of other patrons.
Hunter was the first African-American artist to have a solo exhibition at the New Orleans Museum of Art. She achieved significant recognition during her lifetime, including an invitation to the White House from U.S. President Jimmy Carter and letters from President Ronald Reagan. Hunter's work can be found in numerous museums such as the Dallas Museum of Fine Art, the American Folk Art Museum, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the New Orleans Museum of Art, and the Louisiana State Museum, among other institutions.
She grew up on the plantation as an agricultural laborer, picking cotton and pecans, never learning how to read or write. In her thirties, Hunter began working at the main house as a cook and housekeeper for Cammie Henry, the owner of the plantation. Cammie, an avid patron of the arts and literature, turned the plantation into an artist colony and a hub for artistic expression, inviting a variety of writers and painters to vacation and work there for extended periods of time. Clementine observed the visitors and developed a hobby of painting in her spare time with discarded paint tubes and cardboard left over from the artists. A memory painter, she painted scenes from everyday plantation life and documented the black Cane River Valley experience. Her work colorfully depicts important events like funerals, baptisms, weddings and scenes of plantation labor. She painted everyday, producing nearly 10,000 works in her lifetime. In the early days, she began selling her works for 25 cents to whoever frequented the plantation, and eventually gained a following of supporters who brought her painting supplies so she could keep going. One supporter, Tom Whitehead - now the renowned expert of her work - wrote a biography on the artist and helped her achieve great recognition, along with a number of other patrons.
Hunter was the first African-American artist to have a solo exhibition at the New Orleans Museum of Art. She achieved significant recognition during her lifetime, including an invitation to the White House from U.S. President Jimmy Carter and letters from President Ronald Reagan. Hunter's work can be found in numerous museums such as the Dallas Museum of Fine Art, the American Folk Art Museum, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the New Orleans Museum of Art, and the Louisiana State Museum, among other institutions.