Exterminate198724 × 11 3/4 × 3/4"Paint on woodGift of Ellin and Baron Gordon2000.9.20relief carving1540852722209.2Leroy Almon Sr.SculptureCopyright for this work is under review. TallapoosaTallapoosaUnited StatesGeorgiaThree Dimensional WorksTallapoosaIn 1978, while living in Columbus, Ohio, Leory Almon happened to attend a church service where Elijah Pierce, by then a celebrated artist, was preaching. Pierce’s sermon and his gift of a small sculpture to a member of the congregation so impressed Almon that he decided to visit Pierce’s studio, located in the back room of his barbershop. When Almon lost his job as a salesman and marketing supervisor for the Coca-Cola Company the following year, he began to assist Pierce and soon became his apprentice. Under Pierce’s tutelage, Almon learned to carve wooden bas-reliefs using a pocketknife and chisel. In 1982 Almon returned to his birthplace, Tallapoosa, Georgia, where he worked as a police radio dispatcher and opened a shop where he sold his carvings. Following Pierce’s example, Almon also became a minister and preacher.
In his work, carved into boards of soft wood, Almon addressed religious, contemporary, and historical themes. He was particularly interested in the effects of racism on the African American community. While Almon’s palette is brighter than that of his mentor, he adopted many of Pierce’s techniques, such as adding glitter to his paints. In Exterminate Almon used the stacked registers characteristic of medieval paintings to depict a Nazi concentration camp. At the top of the carving, beneath a pale blue sky marred by heavy black clouds, stand swastika-decorated buildings with barred windows. Paths lead from these buildings to unpainted boxcars. In the center of the work Almon carved the single word “exterminate” in emphatic block letters. Below a second railroad track and behind a vivid green hedge is a pit in which bodies of men, women, and children have been thrown. The signs of violence – splotches of red paint, gray skin tones, and contorted boy positions – contrast with the eerily still scene above. relief
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.org209.219871987 2000 9 2 In 1978, while living in Columbus, Ohio, Leory Almon happened to attend a church service where Elijah Pierce, by then a celebrated artist, was preaching. Pierce’s sermon and his gift of a small sculpture to a member of the congregation so impressed Almon that he decided to visit Pierce’s studio, located in the back room of his barbershop. When Almon lost his job as a salesman and marketing supervisor for the Coca-Cola Company the following year, he began to assist Pierce and soon became his apprentice. Under Pierce’s tutelage, Almon learned to carve wooden bas-reliefs using a pocketknife and chisel. In 1982 Almon returned to his birthplace, Tallapoosa, Georgia, where he worked as a police radio dispatcher and opened a shop where he sold his carvings. Following Pierce’s example, Almon also became a minister and preacher.
In his work, carved into boards of soft wood, Almon addressed religious, contemporary, and historical themes. He was particularly interested in the effects of racism on the African American community. While Almon’s palette is brighter than that of his mentor, he adopted many of Pierce’s techniques, such as adding glitter to his paints. In Exterminate Almon used the stacked registers characteristic of medieval paintings to depict a Nazi concentration camp. At the top of the carving, beneath a pale blue sky marred by heavy black clouds, stand swastika-decorated buildings with barred windows. Paths lead from these buildings to unpainted boxcars. In the center of the work Almon carved the single word “exterminate” in emphatic block letters. Below a second railroad track and behind a vivid green hedge is a pit in which bodies of men, women, and children have been thrown. The signs of violence – splotches of red paint, gray skin tones, and contorted boy positions – contrast with the eerily still scene above. relief
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