Artist Minnie Evans (1892 - 1987)

Paradise Garden

Date1962-1967

MediumMixed media on paper, applied to canvas on board

DimensionsSight: 19 1/2 × 23 5/8 in. (49.5 × 60 cm)

Object numberN0020.2001

Credit LineCollection of the Fenimore Art Museum. Gift of Jane R. Ferrara

Photograph by Richard Walker

Label TextLike many American folk artists Minnie Evans derived her inspiration from a deeply rooted sense of place, community and the environment around her. Evans came to Wilmington, NC with her mother and worked in the household of a wealthy industrialist whose family established Airlie Gardens. She became the gatekeeper of the garden whose lush vegetation inspired her visually and spiritually. A deeply religious woman, Evans created drawings with strong personal and biblical imagery. To her, the garden was an earthly reminder of Eden. Her drawings include plants and flowers, birds and butterflies, cornucopias and rainbows, royalty, stars, and angels. In order to create larger and more elaborate designs, Evans often cut and pasted smaller works together into larger compositions.

Exhibition History"Popular Painters and Other Visionaries", El Museo del Barrio, New York, NY, November 13, 2021 - February 27, 2022.

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