a cat sitting on a head, a prehistoric monster & more

this week in outsider art also includes another gees bend quilt, a shoutout to native american artists and a stunning egyptain revival folk art table from 1925

Nov 26, 2023

THIS WEEK IN OUTSIDER ART

for daily postings of outsider art visit folkartwork.art

**QUINTON STEPHENSON** Prehistoric Monster (1989) // Shell, beaver claw, concrete, resin, and plastic; 16 × 11 × 13 1/2 in. (40.64 × 27.94 × 34.29 cm) via *Milwaukee Art Museum*

**BARRY COLPITTS** Cat Sitting On Womans Head (n.d.) // Polychromed wood; 11" H x 6.5" L x 5.5" W (approx.) via *Black Sheep Gallery*

**GRANDMA MOSES** That a Fine Turkey (1943) // Oil and glitter on masonite; 9 1⁄2 x 14 in. (24 x 35.5 cm.) -- signed 'Moses.' (lower right)—dated 'Nov 17. 1943.,' inscribed with title and numbered '507.' -- *sold at Christie's auction in 2022 for $50,000*

» free preview of this week’s B-B-Bonus This Week in Outsider Art newsletter «

**ARTIST UNKNOWN** 16th Century Skull Form Offertory Box (c. 1520; Florence, Italy) // Carved wood, polychrome; 6 1/4" (w) x 10" (d) x 7" (h) via *Steven S. Powers Works of Art & Americana*

**MARLENE BENNET JONES** Mattie (2010s) // Corduroy and cotton; 49.5 x 49.5 in. via *Souls Grown Deep Foundation*

**FRIEDRICH SCHRÖDER-SONNENSTERN** The King of Sniffles (Der Schnupfnkönig) (1958) // Colored pencil on paper; 20 × 28 5/8 in. (50.8 × 72.71 cm) via *Milwaukee Art Museum*

**VIVIAN MAIER** Untitled (Man Sleeping in Doorway) (1953) // 12 × 12 in | 30.5 × 30.5 cm via *KP PROJECTS*

**FELIPE BENITO ARCHULETA**, Pig, signed underneath with red paint "8-14-1977 - PiG - BY-F.B.A." and includes photos of artist with carving

✌️ this week's bonus newsletter is out with a little backstory about how I found this felipe benito archuleta carving in an antique store in Iowa and how it now lives in my bedroom with me!!! ✌️

**DAVID C. "SNAP" WYATT** Circus Banner: Sealed in a Tomb (1945 - 1955) // Oil on canvas; 99 × 120" via *American Folk Art Museum*

**MAMIE DESCHILLIE** Three Little Lambs and Dog (date unknown) // Tempera on Cardboard; 6.5 in. x 11.5 in. Framed 12.25 in. x 16.25 in.

And thanks to TheHungry.art for the shoutout in this week’s Small Art Biz Boost!

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FEATURED ARTIST

**ANU VASK** Boogie Monsters (A reminder from My Sweet Bee Monster: If bees die off it will end most life.) (c. 2023) // Acrylic paint on canvas courtesy *the artist*

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OH WORD?

Last night after I fell asleep in my son’s crib with him, I woke up made some coffee and as one does, started flipping through some Antique’s Roadshow. I stumbled upon a clip titled, “Appraisal: Egyptian Revival Folk Art Table, ca. 1925.” What greeted me was quite possibly the greatest table I’ve ever laid my eyes on.

All of a sudden, two of my biggest obsessions collided and became one — American Folk Art and Ancient Egypt. What I love most about spending my evenings searching the internet for brilliant folk art, watching Antiques Roadshow, and scouring museum collections is learning about something, someone, or a type of art that I never knew existed. That happens a lot! And it is still so much fun!

Egyptian Revial per my little research on the topic happened in a few phases starting after Napolean DIDN’T shoot the sphix and pyramids with a cannon ball but Americans started becoming fascinated more and more with other countries and cultures all the way up to the Civil War and in the case of this table, it’s third and final revival “phase” took place after Howard Carter found King Tut’s tomb.

There would not be another major period of Egyptomania, as scholars now refer to these periods of obsession with Egyptian antiquities, until the discovery of King Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922, after which Egyptian influences pervaded modern culture. Egyptian motifs would become an integral part of the language of Art Deco, a style that would dominate the decorative arts until the mid-1930s. — The Met Museum

Everything about this table, appraised at roughly $8,500 makes me happy. The different types of wood, the central pyramid and the two side pyramids that make up the base of this “library” table from 1925. Plus, the direct inspiration of inclusion of the boy king on the table top and the wonderfully creepy (thanks to those taxidermy eyes) King Tut on the side of the table makes this table instantly better than any table I have and in the top three tables I’ve ever seen.

Fingers crossed for my half-birthday coming up!

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SHOUT OUT

**Wendy Red Star** (Apsáalooke/Crow, born 1981) Fall, from "The Four Seasons", 2006, printed 2020 via Des Moines Art Center

In honor of Native American Heritage Month, I wanted to share work by one of my favorite artists, Wendy Red Star. This is one of four pieces at the Des Moines Art Center, where artist Wendy Red Star, like many Native American artists before her, tries to break down cultural expectations. I thoroughly enjoy her humor and playfulness in these photos while “challenging the ways in which society refuses to see indigenous people as contemporary figures.” So often, our ideas and perceptions of Native peoples are that of what we’ve seen on TV or in books as kids, and it couldn’t be farther from the truth. Artists like Wendy Red Star and Fritz Scholder, who shine a light on the false history and nature of these artists, should be celebrated each and every day, not just in the month of November.

November is Native American Heritage Month. This is a time to recognize the history, culture, and contributions of Indigenous people.

FROM THE COLLECTIVE

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