Lonnie Holley

The first major monograph on a multifaceted self-taught artist whose work ranges from painting and sculpture to performance and sound. Lonnie Holley’s work has captivated audiences.

“Lonnie Holley has held a cult status among the art cognoscenti for a long time as a visual artist and performer.”—New York Times

Lonnie Holley’s widely admired practice spans painting, drawing, assemblage sculpture, and performance that combines experimental music and poetry. After decades of making art, he is now getting the recognition he richly deserves.

The artist’s first sculptures were carved tombstones for his nieces who perished in a house fire in 1979. Over the following years, he devoted himself to making sculptures that populated his property near Birmingham, a large all-encompassing outdoor installation that was eventually destroyed in 1997. The artist’s work continued unabated as he began to gain recognition and exhibit his work in the South and throughout the US.

In his first major monograph, every facet of his practice is explored. Holiday considers Holley’s art and music as interconnected components of the artist’s overall creative vision. Beardsley focuses on the artist’s Birmingham roots connecting the cultural firmament of that city with other major creative communities in Alabama, most notably Boykin, more popularly known as Gee’s Bend, home of the famous quilters.

About the Author

Harmony Holiday is a writer, dancer, and archivist/myth scientist, and the author of Go Find Your Father/A Famous Blues (Ricochet Editions, 2014) and Negro League Baseball (Fence Books, 2011). John Beardsley is an influential writer, curator, historian, and professor.