Minnie Adkins (born March 13, 1934) is an American

folk art Folk art covers all forms of visual art made in the context of folk culture. Definitions vary, but generally the objects have practical utility of some kind, rather than being exclusively decorative art, decorative. The makers of folk art a ...

ist.

Life and work

Minnie Adkins is a

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

folk artist known for her painted wood carvings of animals – roosters, red foxes, bears, possums, and horses. She was born, 1934, in Isonville, a small town in rural Eastern Kentucky. While a young child, she was attracted to whittling wooden sticks. Her father gave her a pocketknife and she soon took up a hobby practiced mostly by boys and men. In 1968, Adkins, her husband Garland, and their son moved, like many families in Appalachia, to

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

in search of jobs. Homesick, she continued to carve animals and sold her work at local outdoor markets. Returning to Kentucky in 1983, she began selling her carvings at a craft gallery in

Morehead, Kentucky Morehead is a list of Kentucky cities, home rule-class city located along U.S. Route 60 in Kentucky, US 60 (the historic Midland Trail) and Interstate 64 in Kentucky, Interstate 64 in Rowan County, Kentucky, Rowan County, Kentucky, in the United ...

where it was noticed by folk art dealer Larry Hackley who introduced the art work to collectors and galleries outside Kentucky. In 1985, several of her works were included in the collection of the

Kentucky Folk Art Center The Kentucky Folk Art Center is a folk art museum administered by Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky, United States. Its focus is not only to preserve and educate the public on visual folk art but also to promote traditional Appalac ...

, and is now in many permanent private and public collections. Atkins is featured in a short documentary film and many publications . In the late 1980s, Minnie and Garland founded A Day in the Country, a folk art fair that today features works by over 50 folk artists from Kentucky and nine other states. She continues to carve her iconic figures and collaborate on children's books with Kentucky musician and author Mike Norris.

Books

* Lampell, Ramona and Lampell, Millard. ''O, Appalachia: Artists of the Southern Mountains'' Morley, New York : Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 1989. . * Ludwig, Kelly. ''Detour Art: Outsider, Folk Art and Visionary Environments Coast to Coast'' Kansas City, Missouri: Kansas City Star Books, 2007. .

Permanent collections

American Folk Art Museum The American Folk Art Museum is an art museum in the Upper West Side of Manhattan, at 2, Lincoln Square, Columbus Avenue at 66th Street. It is the premier institution devoted to the aesthetic appreciation of folk art and creative expressions of ...

, NYC, NY *

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

, Washington, D.C. *

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art, and its attached Sculpture Garden, is a national art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of char ...

, Washington, D.C. *

High Museum of Art The High Museum of Art (colloquially the High) is the largest museum for visual art in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta, Georgia (on Peachtree Street in Midtown, the city's arts district), the High is 312,000 square feet (28, ...

, Atlanta, GA *

KMAC Museum 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 Ken ...

, Louisville, KY *

Huntington Museum of Art The Huntington Museum of Art is a nationally accredited art museum located in the Park Hills neighborhood above Ritter Park in Huntington, West Virginia. Housed on over 50 acres of land and occupying almost 60,000 square feet, it is the larges ...

, Huntington, WV *

, Morehead State University, Morehead, KY *

Hickory Museum of Art Hickory Museum of Art (HMA) is an art museum in Hickory, North Carolina which holds exhibitions, events, and public educational programs based on a permanent collection of 19th to 21st century American art. The museum also features a long-term e ...

, Hickory, North Carolina *

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', br ...

, Private collection *

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers List ...

, Private Collection. *

Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...

, Private Collection. * Craft and Folk Art Center, Morehead State University * Owensboro Museum of Fine Art, Ky

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adkins, Minnie Folk artists Sculptors from Kentucky American women sculptors 1934 births Living people 20th-century American sculptors 20th-century American women artists 21st-century American sculptors 21st-century American women artists People from Elliott County, Kentucky Kentucky women artists