How to Spend The Hot Afternoons This Week in Shreveport

As the heat rises and the temperatures get steamy outside this week in SIGIS-land, consider spending an afternoon at the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum on Greenwood Road.  The museum is still home to all the fabulous dioramas you remember as a child, as well as many other wonderful surprises.  Through this month you will find a fantastic special, limited exhibition of the works of local folk artist Bertha Cooper Harris.  Mrs. Harris is sometimes compared to artist Clementine Hunter, but she clearly has her own style and story to tell through her work.

Steve and I attended the opening reception on June 2 where the artist was in attendance along with some 400 other guests who came in and out through the afternoon.  In addition to the paintings, there is also brief, eight or nine minute documentary screening which shows a recent visit by Mrs. Harris to the remains of Beene Plantation where she spent much of her youth.

I'm an admitted admirer of Mrs. Harris's work and have a couple of her numbered prints, and one original, in my home.  One of my favorites is "Cooper Hill" which reflect the artist's early life living on her grandfather's land.

I love it because of all the activity and the bright colors.  There is something going on in each part of the painting!  And notice, in the above photo, the little white and black dog in the right corner.  The dog appears in many of Mrs. Harris's paintings.

In her memoir, reviewed here, she writes of having to leave a beloved dog behind when the family moved one time.  I asked her if this was the dog, but alas, it is not.

She told me this dog is just sort of a trademark of hers.  He's cute, though, and I like looking for him in the pictures.  He's not always there, but he's in many of them.

Mrs. Harris paints on whatever she can find; cardboard, fan blades, canvas, gourds, etc.

I love this one:

It reflects pay day and the company/plantation store.  Again, much activity in the picture!

The exhibit runs through June 28.  The museum is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 - 4:00.  Admission is free.

Bertha Harris Exhibition at Louisiana State Exhibit Museum

Local folk artist Bertha Harris will have an exhibition of her work at the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum Sunday June 2 - June 28.

The opening reception is Sunday from 2:00 - 4:00 and will include a documentary film of Beene Gin, an important locale in Mrs. Harris's life.

Bertha Harris, besides being a fabulous artist, has published her memoir, "The Courage to Rise Again" which I reviewed here last year.

Mrs Harris will be at the museum on Sunday signing copies of her book and greeting the public.  She's a wonderful lady with a compelling story.   Light refreshments will be served.

Her art is created on canvas and on other materials such as wood or cardboard.  She has often been compared to Louisiana legend Clementine Hunter.

The museum is located on Greenwood Road in Shreveport.  Admission is free.

Book Review: "The Courage to Rise Again - A Journey from Tears to Testimony"

Several years ago when I was at the Highland Jazz and Blues Festival I met Bertha Cooper Harris.  It was 2008 and she had a vendor tent set up in which she had some of her work for sale on display.  I bought a
"gift tag" which I actually use as a Christmas ornament.  I admired her work at the time and have looked for her to return to the festival each year.

This year she was there and I bought another ornament; this one is a red glass ball with one of her figures painted on it.  I love it!

I also bought her book which came out this year: The Courage to Rise Again -  A Journey from Tears to Testimony.  

Mrs. Harris has a compelling life story.  She was born just outside of Homer, Louisiana in Claiborne Parish.  She was the eighth of nine children and grew up in a live of poverty and struggle.  The family lived on "Cooper Hill" surrounded by grandparents and other relatives and for a child, lots of good times.  When Bertha was around seven, her father died; it was not long after that Bertha's mother moved to a chicken and dairy farm to find work so she could support her family.

Bertha was exposed to violence and abuse at an early age when her two brothers were forced to endure beatings and abuse by Mr. Hunter, who allowed the family to live on his farm in exchange for work.  Their living conditions were deplorable.

Eventually the family ended up on Beene Plantation in Bossier Parish where they picked cotton.  It was hard, back-breaking work and it did not take long for Bertha to figure out that she wanted more out of life than picking cotton.

As if life in extreme poverty and hardship was not challenge enough for one soul, Bertha later endured an abusive marriage, domestic violence, and even later, years of sexual harassment in the workplace.

Through it all, she found the courage to keep fighting back and to win.

I don't want to give away everything here, but suffice to say that Mrs. Harris writes a gripping, page-turner of an autobiography and I found it hard to put down.  I found myself feeling protective of her when her husband beat her and rooting for her when she was determined to finish high school and continue her education.  I felt her loss and heartbreak when she was separated from her sister, and her pride when she achieved success in her work at an insurance company. 

Through it all, the book is a portrait of the life of many black Americans in the rural South who faced extreme poverty and prejudice.  It is also a portrait of a strong, courageous woman who fought back against the wrongs she faced.  She has strong words of advice and wisdom for women subjected to domestic violence and for victims of harassment. 

Fans of author Lalita Tademy's Cane River  will be fans of this book.

From her website:

In the small section of the south, where she was raised, many conditions had not changed much since the end of the Civil War when she was growing up. Tenant farmers and black farm families were practically owned by the family plantations where they worked. Escape from this bonded servitude was exactly that. Many families were always in debt to the plantation store or the owner. Her family was unique in that her grandparent’s family owned their own land. However it did not make them exempt from conditions of those around them. And certainly Bertha’s life may have been a snapshot of history in many respects. 

Berrtha’s struggles to advance in a world where she felt she had little control against forces of bigotry, sexual discrimination and harassment is parallel to struggles that existed throughout the country, only the names and places were different. Her journey to overcome these forces was often a struggle for survival. The story of this struggle should assist those who struggle today with the complex values and apparent glass ceilings in life and the work place.

And almost as a side note, we have the art.  In 2003 Bertha Harris began to paint.  She is a self-taught folk artist many call "the next Clementine Hunter."   Her pictures show a simpler way of life often reflecting family scenes and her early memories of life on Cooper Hill.  One of my favorite paintings is of William Chatman School (which I've ordered from her website!) but I love the one of life on Cooper Hill too for its pure joy of living.

Her book is filled with illustrations of her work.

You can buy the book here which would make a great Christmas present, by the way, especially paired with one of her prints.

Bertha is also on Facebook.  And of course, here is her website.

Bertha Cooper Harris: Folk Artist

At the Highland Jazz and Blues Festival recently, I purchased this cute wooden "gift tag" from artist Bertha Cooper Harris. She called it a gift tag, but I'm calling it an ornament. I'm going to hang it on my Christmas tree.

I'm not usually a fan of folk art, but I know a lot of people are. I visited Bertha's booth at the festival because for some reason, her display drew me in. Then her exuberant personality charmed me. I visited with her while I looked at her work. She was born in Claiborne parish and now lives in Blanchard, La. She has worked in fabric art (sock dolls!) for the past ten years or so and has recently begun painting. She, of course, evokes the feel of Clementine Hunter works and the comparison has been made often. Mrs. Harris has even displayed her works at Melrose. She will paint on anything; when I saw her she had paintings on canvas, wood (like my gift tag) and cardboard!

Mrs. Harris was the featured artist at the 2008 Claiborne Parish Jubilee Art & Quilt Show. If you get the chance, check out her work. I love the lively aspect of her paintings - all the things going on in them. Even if you aren't a real fan of folk art, she will probably have something that appeals!