Folk Art by Rendville Artists
Outsider Art Show at the Bryn Du Mansion in Granville, Ohio
Good art cheap was the byword for a successful show and sale of art by the developmentally and physically disabled self-taught artists of the Rendville Art Works.
Folk Art, Outsider Art, and Self Taught Art are all names for the kind of work produced by the Rendville Artists, a group of physically and developmentally disabled artists whose work was featured in a show in Granville, Ohio in February. The work on display and sale was compelling, charming, and cheap.
Rendville Art Works
The Rendville Art Works opened in 2002 as an experimental, art oriented project of Residential, Inc, the 5013-c umbrella organization of which the art work is a part. Residential Inc director Joel Yeager recognized therapeutic value to his clients, many of whom live in group homes in nearby towns, of the creating of art, and organized the art works. The results were promising and the Rendville Art Works was born. Today, the eight Rendville Artists work their magic in the old (1861) Rendville Baptist Church, which was once home turf to Adam Clayton Powell, Sr.
Rendville History
The town of Rendville in Perry County, Ohio, was founded in 1879 by Colonel William P. Rend, a Chicago businessman. It was part of a large parcel originally purchased by the Ohio Central Railroad. The nearby coal-rich Hocking Hills were well served by the railroad and its spur lines, and Rendville, and other small towns like it became thriving centers of industry based on coal. Rendville was different than its neighbors in that it had a thriving black community. These African-Americans were one generation out of slavery, and part of the early migration away from the hopeless economic situation of the south. As was the case with one industry towns all across America, however, the town eventually dried up along with the coal.
Rendville Artists' Outsider Art Show
The show was staged at the Bryn Du Mansion in Granville Ohio, once home to John Sutphin Jones. Jones was a coal and railroad tycoon originally from Chicago who made his fortune in coal with his Perry county company, The Sunday Creek Coal Company. Research has turned up no concrete proof of a connection between Rend and Jones, but it is interesting to note that Sunday Creek is the name of both Jones’ company and the waterway that borders Rendville on the east. Historic connection or not, Jones’ former home proved to be a fortunate setting for the show. Out of the 100 or so paintings on exhibit, only six went unsold.
Rendville Artists
Some of the artists whose works appeared in the show included:
- Joseph Baggs, specializing in family groups including husbands and wives and happy children. His pieces ranged in price from $25 to $100 for a pair entitled Husband & Wife
- Sally Cairo paints animals, especially birds. Her Warhol-esque cat sold within minutes of opening, and a fist fight almost ensued over ownership of her Kitchen Rooster!
- Roy Crabtree offered a seven foot tall painting entitled Abe Lincoln in Tall Grass for $175 that also sold within minutes.
- Jim Swingle’s lovely flowerworks are a cheerful blend of flowers and fireworks done in a style all his own. Rendered in bold colors, these appealing paintings found an enthusiastic audience.
- Ron Tucker’s work in paint and found objects were some of the show's most compelling if scary works. His Long Orange Beard ($65) brought to mind Goya’s 1819 work Saturn Devouring his Children, and his large canvas, Man with a Bird on His Head ($175) managed to be both whimsical and frightening.
Sources:
- The Story of Rendville by Charles Nelson, excerpt from Buckeye Hill Country: A Journal of Regional History published by University of Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Ohio.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
