personal collection

this week in outsider art includes views of my personal collection, an epic sarah mary taylor quilt, unfired clay, maria prymachenko, carnival knockdowns and 'find a grave'

Jun 30, 2024

THIS WEEK IN OUTSIDER ART

for daily postings of outsider art visit folkartwork.art or follow on Instagram

**ARTIST UNKNOWN** Adam and Eve hand painted on tin (20th Century) // 8 inches tall x 6 inches wide — *Personal collection (available for purchase)*

**SARAH MARY TAYLOR** “Paint” Quilt (c. 1979-1983) // Cotton and polyester; running stitch; 6 feet 6 inches × 67 inches (198.1 × 170.2 cm) via *Philadelphia Museum of Art*

**JAMES "SON FORD" THOMAS** Untitled (1980s) // Unfired clay, paint, human hair; 8 x 4 x 4.5 inches via *Souls Grown Deep Foundation*

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

**ARTIST UNKNOWN** Naked Man Seated on a Snake (late 19th Century) // Carved wood and paint; 15 (h)" x 4 1/2" (w) x 4 1/2" (d) via *Steven S. Powers*

**ARTIST UNKNOWN** Hand carved Jeu De Massacre knockdowns (c. 1920s; France) // Hand carved and painted wooden fairground figures with the backs hollowed out; Height: 18 in (45.72 cm)Width: 5 in (12.7 cm)Depth: 3.5 in (8.89 cm) via *1st Dibs*

**MARIA PRYMACHENKO** The Jackdaw Flies, Looks For Its Husband, But He Is Nowhere To Be Found. His Body Was Scattered All Over Ukraine (Flowers Will Grow, Children Will Pick Them, They Will Carry Them To The Graves and My Grave Soared Into The Sky) (1991) // Gouache on paper via *Mood Scent Bar* (photo: MSN press materials)

**LUCILE SMITH** House And Dogwoods (date unknown) // Oil on paper; 27.5" w x 21.25" h. (private collection via *Slotin Auction*

**LUKE SHEMROSKE** Heal, Motherfucker, Heal! / Acrylic and Paint Marker on Canvas; 11x14 inches via *Project Onward*

**RAF (Possibly R.A. Flagg)** Folk Art Cat Toy on Wheels (1994) // Carved wood and paint; 6.5 inches tall x 5.5 inches wide x 1.75 inches depth -- *Personal collection (available for purchase)*

**JACK SAVITSKY** Train in Coal Town (1975) // Oil on board; 33 × 25 × 1" via *American Folk Art Museum*

**RENEESHA MCCOY** Untitled Mini (FA 001) (2024) // Acrylic, gouache, paint marker, ink, pen, and paint scrap on paper — *available for purchase via the artist in the FolkArtwork Collective shop*

**SAM DOYLE** Frip, St. Helena's Best (1970–1980) // Paint on roofing tin; 43 1/8 x 52 inches via @highmuseumofart

Share This Week in Outsider Art

FEATURED ARTIST OF THE WEEK

**LUÍS MACEDO** Cindy, Let's Go Fuck O Castelo? (2023) // Tile on plywood; 60 cm x 60 cm courtesy *the artist*

Brief Side Effects transports you to the original and dark folk tales, through the fascinating and disturbing interpretation of psychoanalytic aspects. It is important to know the violence of kids abandoned in the black forests and the king's desire to offer his daughter, the witches who eat children and the eroticism in glass shoes, to allow the creation of a new and strange moral episode. The characters gain space for new interpretations in the stories and invite us to question the role of behavior in society, of what can be considered morally appropriate or unacceptable.

be featured

WATCHING AND READING

Here are a few things I’ve been watching this past week:

Here are a few things I’ve been reading this past week:

OH WORD?

» Find A Grave «

Photo of S.P. Dinsmoor looking at the coffee he built himself (c. 1930s)

This time last year I was standing outside the mausoleum of S.P. Dinsmoor, the man behind the Garden of Eden art environment in Lucas, Kansas. I turned to my then 5-year-old and asked, “Do you want to see a mummy?”. Naturally, he said yes and for now he doesn’t seem too traumatized by it.

It Dinsmoor’s wish and mission, to be buried in the coffin he created with a glass lid on top so viewers traveling from around the world could see the man who made a truly remarkable art environment. A weird last wish? Sure. But Dinsmoor, clearly, was a little weird and I respect the hell out of that.

S.P. Dinsmoor’s mausoleum at the Garden of Eden in Lucas, Kansas

You can’t see photos anywhere of S.P Dinsmoor’s final resting place, they kindly ask you don’t take any photos when you enter the mausoleum so you’ll have to take my word for it or go visit it yourself. And thanks to Larry Harris, one of the most invaluable resources and someone I would venture to be lucky enough to call a friend, you can find the final resting places of scores of self-taught, folk, art-brut, and creators of art environments across the country — all in one place!

Gravestone of Henry Darger located in All Saints Catholic Cemetery in Des Plaines, Illinois

While I can understand why some people aren’t too found of cemeteries, I tend to find them so deeply peaceful and calming full of beautiful and diverse gravestones and wonderful examples of art that you rarely can see anywhere else.

And while I knew Larry Harris, some of you may know him as Narrow Larry was the keeper of all things art environments, having the best website around for anyone taking a road trip and looking to see some wonderful self-taught man-made outdoor artwork along the way, I didn’t know this resource existed. But I am so glad it does.

Gravestone of Nellie Mae Rowe located at Flat Rock Cemetery in Fayetteville, Georgia

Check out Larry’s list on FindAGrave.com for Self-Taught / Art Environment graves as well as Art Brut graves, or virtual cemeteries if you will. And if you happen to visit or see any of these, send in a picture to @folkartwork and I will gladly share it giving you full credit of course!

SHOUT OUT

folkartwork

A post shared by @folkartwork

Shout out to art environments everywhere. This week I shared seven of my favorite art environments I have visited, mostly across the Midwest, from Rye, Colorado to Peoria, Illinois. If there is an art environment within an 8 hour drive from where I live — I’m there. Hoping to add more to that list later this summer, for now enjoy photos and videos of all the art environments I’ve visited in the past few years.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

» MEET THE COLLECTOR SERIES PART SIXTY-NINE — Adam Oestreich, Iowa «

FROM THE COLLECTIVE

**BEN GARDNER** Shadow Stories #1 (The Beginning) (2024) // Ink, marker, colored pencil, found print, found paper on paper

BEN GARDNER is an artist, writer, and musician. He started drawing on bowling score pads that his parents brought home from their league, obsessing over Commander Mark’s drawing show “The Secret City” when he was young. His recent work combines medieval illuminated manuscripts and his interest in folklore, superstition, myth, and storytelling.

available for purchase

Follow FolkArtwork on INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK | TIKTOK | YOUTUBE and shop original artwork from self-taught and emerging artists across the globe.

✌️ AS ALWAYS —THIS NEWSLETTER WILL REMAIN FREE. But check this, now a BONUS NEWSLETTER w/BONUS OUTSIDER ART goes out every Wednesday! (Paid Subscribers) ✌️

Thanks to everyone for subscribing and supporting this newsletter — it means a lot to me and I love that other people are enjoying this artwork as much as me. If you haven’y yet, consider subscribing to the paid newsletter for bonus outsider art every Wednesday morning.