This week’s staff favorite is artist Bessie Harvey. Though Harvey created her own toys as a child, it wasn’t until adulthood that she started taking art more seriously. The mother of eleven children worked at Blount Memorial Hospital in Alcoa, Tennessee, and she spent her nights creating dolls to help supplement her income. Harvey first gained notoriety after submitting art for the 1974 art show at the hospital.
Harvey’s work shifted from dolls to wooden sculptures of biblical characters and religious symbols. She incorporated elements from nature such as driftwood and shells in her works. Later in her career, Harvey focused her art on capturing African-American life.
Always in tune with her faith and religion, Harvey credited God as the true creator behind each of her works.
Authored by:
Candice Lawrence
