Artworks

William Edmondson, born to slaves on a plantation in Tennessee, was a prominent self-taught sculptor. He spent the entirety of his early life a manual laborer, working a variety of jobs from railroad man to hospital janitor. It wasn’t until 1929, when Edmondson was 55 years old, that he received a “vision from God,” which encouraged him to begin sculpting. 

Using salvaged chunks of limestone from demolished buildings, and a set of sculpting tools fashioned from railroad spikes, Edmondson began his stonemason career making tombstones for Black cemeteries. His early work consisted of mostly Christian iconography, such as angels, and biblical characters, until he expanded his oeuvre to include various professions, animals, and objects. Though Edmondson worked with crude tools and rough stone, his sculptures retained a defining element of softness. The faces of teachers, nurses, and angels were rounded with care, as were the curves of bowls, Dorset sheep horns, and more. After several years of sculpting, Edmondson earned the attention of the Nashville art community and eventually became the first African-American artist to have a solo exhibition at MoMA. Though Edmondson passed away in 1951, his work is continuously featured in numerous publications, museums, and galleries worldwide. He remains a key figure in the outsider art canon.