Clementine Hunter

Louisiana’s most famous artist, Clementine Hunter, was born in 1886 at Hidden Hill Plantation, a cotton farm with a reputation of being a difficult place to live. When Clementine was a young girl, her father moved them from the harsh environment of Hidden Hill to the financially successful Melrose Plantation acquired in 1898 by John and Camelia (“Miss Cammie”) Henry. Miss Cammie turned Melrose into a haven for artists and writers who came to live and work. Melrose became home to the Hunter family when Clementine was fifteen. There she worked the cotton fields and pecan groves for most of her youth. When she was middle aged, Miss Cammie brought Clementine into the Big House to cook and clean. It was here that she came in contact with a New Orleans artist Alberta Kinsley who inspired Clementine to paint. Without formal training, she produced colorful memory paintings that captured life on Melrose Plantation. In 1939, Francois Mignon, a self educated writer came to live at Melrose. It was Mignon who began a tireless, lifelong promotion of the artist. Today the story of the servant girl who became a famous artist is known around the world. Her paintings are recognized as a narrative telling the story of plantation life during the time before back breaking labor was replaced by mechanization. Clementine Hunter is considered one of the most important self-taught artists of the 20th century. Her works can be seen in the Smithsonian Institution, The Museum of American Folk Art and countless other museums and private collections around the world. Clementine Hunter died on January 1, 1988 at the age of 101.