{"object":[{"sourceId":{"label":"Source ID","value":"122"},"copyright":{"label":"Copyright","value":"Copyright for this work is under review."},"creditline":{"label":"Credit Line","value":"Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr."},"endDate":{"label":"End Date","value":"1980"},"sortNumber":{"label":"Sort Number","value":"1990     1    8"},"invno":{"label":"Accession number","value":"1990.1.8"},"description":{"label":"Description","value":""},"medium":{"label":"Medium","value":"Paint on wood"},"geographyPlaceregion":{"label":"Place/Region","value":"Columbus"},"media":{"label":"Media","value":{"mediaURL":"https://collection.folkartmuseum.org/internal/media/dispatcher/2056/full","mediaDepartment":"Object Photographs","mediaType":"Image","mediaId":"2056"}},"title":{"label":"Title","value":"Carved Compote"},"geographyCity":{"value":"Columbus"},"textEntriesWebsitedisplaytext":{"value":["Elijah Pierce, the son of a former slave, was born near Baldwyn, Mississippi, in 1892. Upon leaving his father's farm, Pierce apprenticed himself to a barber and, sometime before 1920, received a license to preach from the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Baldwyn. After the death of his first wife, Pierce joined the Great Migration to the North, first working on railroad bridge gangs and then resuming work as a barber. In 1924, he moved to Columbus, Ohio, to be near his second wife's family. For nearly fifty years, Pierce worked as a barber and preached on weekends at county fairs, schools, and churches. In the late 1920s or early 1930s, he began to carve intricate bas-relief sculptures that illuminate biblical scenes and celebrate the achievements of African American heroes such as Joe Lewis and Marion Anderson. Pierce's The Book of Wood, thirty-three scenes from the life of Christ, depicts Jesus as a black man. In 1954, Pierce opened his own barbershop with a studio in the back room. Bolstered by recognition from both artists and museums in the early 1970s, Pierce began to carve full-time. His barbershop, transformed into the Elijah Pierce Art Gallery, received visitors from all over the world.Carved Compote is a fresh conception of the display of artificial fruits often found in middle-class dining rooms. With a disarming freedom, Pierce stacked individual fruits and vegetables in rows against a vivid green background. He disregarded scale\u2014a watermelon is smaller than a bunch of grapes\u2014and was unconcerned with naturalism. Pierce slashed into one round fruit to turn it into a spiky pineapple and jabbed holes into another to make an enormous pale green strawberry. He broadly striped melons and daubed luscious grapes with red, pink, brown, violet, and green. With its bright colors and shiny finish, Carved Compote is the very image of hearty abundance.Cheryl Rivers, \"Carved Compote,\" in Stacy C. Hollander, American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 383.","Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.　To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.org","Elijah Pierce was born in Baldwynn, Michigan, the son of a former slave, and received his family name from the plantation his father worked. His family was intensely religious and this early environment had a profound effect on him later in life. Pierce was ordained at the Mount Zion Baptist Church in Baldwynn, around 1920. Pierce left the family farm early and apprenticed himself to a barber at the age of 16. In 1924, Pierce moved to Columbus, Ohio, the home of his second wife and worked for other barbers until he opened his own shop in 1954. The first carving Pierce ever made was an elephant which he gave to his wife. With her encouragement, he went on to carve every animal he could think of before advancing to religious themes. he and his wife would travel around during the summer, selling the carvings at churches or fairs, where Pierce would explain the religio-us stories behind the work. He carved his bas reliefs using only a pocket knife. Occasionally, glitter was applied to the wet paint of a finished carving. After he opened his own shop, Pierce would carve between working on customers and later turned one of the two rooms into a studio. One of his best-known works is the \"Book of Wood,\" which Pierce carved in 1932, containing 33 \"pages\" of wood reliefs illustrating a year of Jesus' life on earth, mounted on cardboard and bound with string. In 1971, Pierce was \"discovered\" by Boris Gruenwald, then a sculpture student at Ohio University. Gruenwald was able to arrange exhibitions, first at the Krannert Art Museum and, by 1972, pierce had his first one-man show at the Danenberg Gallery in New York. Pierce's religious convictions greatly influenced the direction of his \"Sermons in Wood,\" but he also painted prominant figures such as Joe Lewis or social themes such as \"Convicts and Presidents.\"","SCULPTURE"]},"bibliography":{"label":"Bibliography","value":""},"collections":{"label":"Collections","value":"Three Dimensional Works"},"geography":{"label":"Geography","value":"Columbus"},"id":{"label":"Id","value":"152281"},"geographyState":{"value":"Ohio"},"geographyCountry":{"value":"United States"},"onview":{"label":"On View","value":"0"},"people":{"label":"Artist / Maker","value":{"displayOrder":"1","personRole":"Artist","personID":"346","content":"Elijah Pierce"}},"classifications":{"label":"Classification(s)","value":"Sculpture"},"textEntries":{"label":"Text Entries","value":["Elijah Pierce, the son of a former slave, was born near Baldwyn, Mississippi, in 1892. Upon leaving his father's farm, Pierce apprenticed himself to a barber and, sometime before 1920, received a license to preach from the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Baldwyn. After the death of his first wife, Pierce joined the Great Migration to the North, first working on railroad bridge gangs and then resuming work as a barber. In 1924, he moved to Columbus, Ohio, to be near his second wife's family. For nearly fifty years, Pierce worked as a barber and preached on weekends at county fairs, schools, and churches. In the late 1920s or early 1930s, he began to carve intricate bas-relief sculptures that illuminate biblical scenes and celebrate the achievements of African American heroes such as Joe Lewis and Marion Anderson. Pierce's The Book of Wood, thirty-three scenes from the life of Christ, depicts Jesus as a black man. In 1954, Pierce opened his own barbershop with a studio in the back room. Bolstered by recognition from both artists and museums in the early 1970s, Pierce began to carve full-time. His barbershop, transformed into the Elijah Pierce Art Gallery, received visitors from all over the world.Carved Compote is a fresh conception of the display of artificial fruits often found in middle-class dining rooms. With a disarming freedom, Pierce stacked individual fruits and vegetables in rows against a vivid green background. He disregarded scale\u2014a watermelon is smaller than a bunch of grapes\u2014and was unconcerned with naturalism. Pierce slashed into one round fruit to turn it into a spiky pineapple and jabbed holes into another to make an enormous pale green strawberry. He broadly striped melons and daubed luscious grapes with red, pink, brown, violet, and green. With its bright colors and shiny finish, Carved Compote is the very image of hearty abundance.Cheryl Rivers, \"Carved Compote,\" in Stacy C. Hollander, American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 383.","Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.　To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.org","Elijah Pierce was born in Baldwynn, Michigan, the son of a former slave, and received his family name from the plantation his father worked. His family was intensely religious and this early environment had a profound effect on him later in life. Pierce was ordained at the Mount Zion Baptist Church in Baldwynn, around 1920. Pierce left the family farm early and apprenticed himself to a barber at the age of 16. In 1924, Pierce moved to Columbus, Ohio, the home of his second wife and worked for other barbers until he opened his own shop in 1954. The first carving Pierce ever made was an elephant which he gave to his wife. With her encouragement, he went on to carve every animal he could think of before advancing to religious themes. he and his wife would travel around during the summer, selling the carvings at churches or fairs, where Pierce would explain the religio-us stories behind the work. He carved his bas reliefs using only a pocket knife. Occasionally, glitter was applied to the wet paint of a finished carving. After he opened his own shop, Pierce would carve between working on customers and later turned one of the two rooms into a studio. One of his best-known works is the \"Book of Wood,\" which Pierce carved in 1932, containing 33 \"pages\" of wood reliefs illustrating a year of Jesus' life on earth, mounted on cardboard and bound with string. In 1971, Pierce was \"discovered\" by Boris Gruenwald, then a sculpture student at Ohio University. Gruenwald was able to arrange exhibitions, first at the Krannert Art Museum and, by 1972, pierce had his first one-man show at the Danenberg Gallery in New York. Pierce's religious convictions greatly influenced the direction of his \"Sermons in Wood,\" but he also painted prominant figures such as Joe Lewis or social themes such as \"Convicts and Presidents.\"","SCULPTURE"]},"beginDate":{"label":"Begin Date","value":"1970"},"displayDate":{"label":"Date","value":"c. 1975"},"exhibitions":{"label":"Exhibitions","value":[{"exhibitionDisplayDate":"Thursday, July 11, 2002 - Sunday, January 5, 2003","exhibitionEndISODate":"2003-01-26","exhibitionID":"73","exhibitionISOBeginDate":"2002-07-11","exhibitionBeginDate":"2002","exhibitionTitle":"American Anthem","exhibitionEndDate":"2003"},{"exhibitionDisplayDate":"Thursday, June 28, 1990 - Sunday, September 9, 1990","exhibitionEndISODate":"1990-09-09","exhibitionID":"15","exhibitionISOBeginDate":"1990-06-28","exhibitionBeginDate":"1990","exhibitionTitle":"Pictures, Patchwork and Promised Gifts","exhibitionEndDate":"1990"}]},"dimensions":{"label":"Dimensions","value":"13 5/8 × 13 × 4\""}}]}