NEW ORLEANS – Mar. 14, 2019

Now open at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art and on view through July 14, 2019, Vernacular Voices showcases artwork from the Museum’s Permanent Collection by Self-taught, Outsider and Visionary artists from the American South. Artists included are Minnie Evans, Clementine Hunter, Zelle Manning, Sister Gertrude Morgan, Welmon Sharlhorne, Herbert Singleton, among others.

With birth dates ranging from 1886 for Clementine Hunter to 1952 for Welmon Sharlhorne, these artists witnessed the Old South change from a mostly agrarian culture, with a majority of the common people tied to the labor of the land, to the New South of industry and sprawling suburban development. Most of them suffered the injustices of the Jim Crow era, and all of them witnessed the difficult, yet inspiring struggle of the Civil Rights Movement.

Unlike folk art in a broad sense – which includes craft genres deeply rooted in tradition, such as ceramics, basketry, blacksmithing and quilting – the artwork in this exhibition concerns itself with an expressive esthetic more commonly associated with modern and contemporary art.

“The term “vernacular” is commonly used to describe the language of the common people of a particular place,” says Bradley Sumrall, Curator of the Collection at the Ogden Museum. “It implies a unique iteration of language – both visual and spoken – bound to location and free from the confines of an academic dialogue. The art in Vernacular Voices is drawn from life itself – intuitive, honest and tied to the culture in which it was created.”

For more information regarding Vernacular Voices at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, please contact Samantha Scoggins at sscoggins@ogdenmuseum.org or 504.539.9604.

About the Ogden Museum of Southern Art

Located in the vibrant Warehouse Arts District of downtown New Orleans, Louisiana, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art holds the largest and most comprehensive collection of Southern art and is recognized for its original exhibitions, public events and educational programs which examine the development of visual art alongside Southern traditions of music, literature and culinary heritage to provide a comprehensive story of the South. Established in 1999 and in Stephen Goldring Hall since 2003, the Museum welcomes almost 85,000 visitors annually, and attracts diverse audiences through its broad range of programming including exhibitions, lectures, film screenings and concerts which are all part of its mission to broaden the knowledge, understanding, interpretation and appreciation of the visual arts and culture of the American South.

The Ogden Museum is open daily from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. with extended hours on Thursdays from 6 – 8 p.m. for Ogden After Hours. Admission is free to Museum Members and $13.50 for adults, $11 for seniors 65 and older, $6.75 for children ages 5-17 and free for children under 5.

The Ogden Museum is free to Louisiana Residents on Thursdays from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. courtesy of The Helis Foundation. The Helis Foundation is a Louisiana private foundation, established by the William Helis Family. The Art Funds of the Helis Foundation advance access to the arts for the community through contributions that sustain operations for, provide free admission to, acquire works of art and underwrite major exhibitions and projects of institutions within the Greater New Orleans area.

The Museum is closed Lundi Gras and Mardi Gras, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Years Day.

The Museum is located at 925 Camp Street, New Orleans Louisiana 70130. For more information visit ogdenmuseum.org or call 504.539.9650.