Edgar Tolson
Edgar Tolson | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 24, 1904 |
| Died | September 7, 1984 (aged 80) |
| Known for | Woodcarver, folk artist |
| Notable work | "Fall of Man" cycle, carvings portraying the story of Adam and Eve |
Edgar Tolson (1904–1984) was a woodcarver from Kentucky who became a well-known folk artist.[1]
He was born in Lee City, Wolfe County, Kentucky as the fourth of eleven children and educated through the sixth grade. He worked as a carpenter and stonemason and was married twice, fathering eighteen children in all, one of whom is Paul Tolson, a local of Campton, who is also a gifted carver and sketch artist. Although Tolson began working in the tradition of the Appalachian woodcarvers before him, after suffering a stroke in 1957, he became a full-time woodcarver and artist, and his subject matter grew increasingly idiosyncratic.[2]
Tolson first came to national attention through the Grassroots Craftsmen, an initiative of
Tolson is best known for his "Fall of Man" cycle, a series of carvings portraying the story of Adam and Eve.[2]
He died in Campton, Kentucky in 1984.[3]
The Edgar Tolson Folk Art Library at Morehead State University is named after him.[4]
References
- ^ "Edgar Tolson - Artist, Fine Art, Auction Records, Prices, Biography for Edgar Tolson". Ask Art, the Artist's Bluebook. Retrieved 2013-04-16.
- ^ a b "Artist Profile - Edgar Tolson". Foundation for Self Taught Artists. Archived from the original on 2013-01-30. Retrieved 2013-04-16.
- ^ "Adam and Eve by Edgar Tolson". Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery. Retrieved 2013-04-16.
- ^ "About MSU: Named Spaces and Places". Morehead State University. Archived from the original on 2013-04-06. Retrieved 2013-04-16.
External links
- Tolson's entry on the Top 50 Works at the University of Kentucky Art Museum
- Oral history interview with Edgar Tolson, 1981 July 30, Archives of American Art
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