Clementine Hunter

She spent only ten days in school, yet was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts.

            She never learned to read or write, but is credited as an historian.

            She sold her paintings from the front door of her unpainted cabin.

            You cannot tour Melrose Plantation without hearing her name, and after my visit, I remember little except her story. Clementine Hunter, born around late December 1886 or early January 1887, lived and worked on the plantation she moved to when she was fifteen years old. Her experiences there were forged in her mind and released when an artist visited Melrose and left behind brushes and paints. That night, while in her fifties, Hunter painted her first work of art on a window shade and her career began. Encouraged by plantation curator Francois Mignon who supplied her with materials and promoted her, Hunter went on to create thousands of paintings.

            Hunter’s works form a picture book of life on Melrose. She painted what she remembered: threshing pecans, picking cotton, gathering figs, weddings, baptisms, funerals, and everyday life.

            I loved her paintings. The angels’ hair looked like elongated triangles. Hunter said this is how she thought their hair would look while they were flying.

            When questioned about a huge chicken she had painted in front of a cart, she explained that it would take a big chicken to pull a cart.

            She painted people she liked larger than people she didn’t. In one portion of her mural in Melrose’s African house, she portrayed a wedding. The bride was much bigger than the groom, and the cake in the background was disproportionately large. I guess she liked sweets.

            I wonder what kind of artist I would be? How would I portray my life through art? If my memories were committed to a canvas, what would they look like? Would I focus more attention, more time, more paint capturing the positives in life or the negatives? Would the people I admire truly appear larger than life? How would I find a way to present the importance of God in my daily activities?

            Although I may never touch a brush, my attitudes, conversations, and choices paint a clear picture. I want the presence of God to be the main part of every scene, making His space in my life significant, magnified to allow His character and priorities to be examined with clarity. 

            What picture does your life paint? May all of our masterpieces reflect David’s plea in Psalm 34:3,  “Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together.” Psalm 34:3

Ronny may be reached at rmichel@rtconline.com