Elmer Lucille Allen (born in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, August 24, 1931) is a ceramic artist and chemist who graduated from Nazareth College (now

Spalding University Spalding University is a private Catholic university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is affiliated with the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. History Spalding University traces its origins to Nazareth Academy, one of the oldest educational instituti ...

) in 1953. She became the first African-American chemist at Brown-Forman in 1966.

Early life

Allen was born in

the Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagion ...

era in Louisville, Kentucky, at a time when it was still a segregated city. She took her first art class, a sewing class, in seventh grade at Madison Street Junior High School. She stated in an interview that the first artist she identified with was her teacher, Ms. Hattie Figg, who taught painting at the junior high. She learned many functional crafts in junior high, such as shoe repair, printing, sewing, and carpentry. She also learned various crafts at the Plymouth Settlement House and Presbyterian Community Center. She was also a Girl Scout, and this activity fostered her interest in art. She graduated from Central High School in 1949, at a time when African-American women had very few opportunities available to them.

Later career

Allen retired from Brown-Forman in 1997, after which she devoted more time to her art. Starting in 1981 she began to study art at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...

, receiving her Masters of Creative Arts with a focus in ceramics and fiber in 2002. Allen's textile work incorporates

shibori is a Japanese manual tie-dyeing technique, which produces a number of different patterns on fabric. History Some discussion exists as to the origin of as a technique within Japan, and indeed, the exact country of origin of some of the earlies ...

dyeing techniques. Speaking of her ceramics, Allen states, "I make the things that I want, and I have always liked teapots." She enjoys the fact that if she made something she did not like, she could simply start over again. Her platters are typically dark and molten, while her teapots are colorful and graphic. She states, "When I rented my first studio in 2005 at Mellwood, I knew that I was truly an artist." In 2011 Allen's work was included in the show ''Powering Creativity: Air, Fuel, Heat'' at the Carnegie Center for Art and History in

New Albany, Indiana New Albany is a city in Floyd County, Indiana, United States, situated along the Ohio River, opposite Louisville, Kentucky. The population was 37,841 as of the 2020 census. The city is the county seat of Floyd County. It is bounded by I-265 t ...

. Allen's work was part of the ''2016 Women's Artist Exhibition: The African Heritage Experience'' at the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage.

Awards

* 1986 – Governor's Award in the Arts (Kentucky) *2004—Kentucky’s Community Arts Lifetime Local Achievement Award *2004—Woman of Distinction *2007 -- "Women of Spunk" from Actors Theatre * 2011 – Caritas Medal

* 2015 –

Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft KMAC Museum is an American art museum that "connects people to Art and Creative Practice". The museum is a 501c3 organization located in the West Main District of downtown Louisville, Kentucky History The museum was founded in 1981 as the Ke ...

's Art Advocacy Award *2015—Community Spirit Award given by the

College of Arts and Science and the Yearlings Club *2016—Parkland Rising Up Project *2016 --

Louisville Defender ''Louisville Defender'' is a weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky. History It was founded in 1933 by Alvin H. Bowman of Louisville and John Sengstacke of Chicago, as an affiliate of the ''Chicago Defender''. It joined ''The Louisville Lead ...

– Lifetime Community Service Recognition Award *2016—Outstanding Community Leader by Metro Council *2019 --

Louisville Free Public Library The Louisville Free Public Library (LFPL) is the public library system in Louisville, Kentucky, and the largest public library system in the U.S. state of Kentucky. History Formation The Louisville Free Public Library was created in 1902 by an a ...

’s Pillars of Louisville

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Elmer Lucille 1931 births Living people African-American chemists American textile artists American women ceramists American ceramists Artists from Louisville, Kentucky Spalding University alumni University of Louisville alumni American women chemists Central High School (Louisville, Kentucky) alumni Brown–Forman people Women textile artists 21st-century American women artists 21st-century ceramists 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American artists 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women