Willie Massey (American, 1906-1990). Birdhouse (mixed media), ca. 1980s. A wonderful red, white, and blue painted wooden birdhouse by Willie Massey, a Kentucky-born, self-taught African-American artist known for his carvings, paintings, and assemblages. This whimsical, multi-level birdhouse is made of wood from old fruit crates that Massey collected. Wingless birds modeled from aluminum foil and painted red and blue 'live' with the piece - the blue one perched atop the roof, the red one clinging to a tree branch that Massey painted white. A wonderful example of American folk art! Size of house itself: 10.125" L x 12.125" W x 19" H (25.7 cm x 30.8 cm x 48.3 cm) Size w/ branch: 12.7" L x 15" W x 27" H (32.3 cm x 38.1 cm x 68.6 cm)

During the 70 years he worked as a tenant farmer, Willie Massey made utilitarian objects to meet practical needs and simultaneously satisfy his creative spirit. Interestingly, he only began creating sculptures and paintings after his wife's death in 1955. Massey created his sculptures - which he called "tricks" - from repurposed materials. These works included renderings of birds and animals, farm equipment, airplanes, and birdhouses like this example. He is best known for his birdhouses, his wingless birds made from tin foil and painted with enamel, as well as his airplanes.

Massey's art has been exhibited in "African-American Folk Art in Kentucky" (Kentucky Folk Art Center, 2000), "Passionate Visions of the American South: Self-Taught Artists from 1940 to the Present" (New Orleans Museum of Art and traveled to Berkeley, San Diego, Washington D.C., and Raleigh, 1993-1995), and other important museum exhibitions. In addition, his art resides in the permanent collections of numerous museums, including the Birmingham Museum of Art, the Morris Museum of Art, and the Kentucky Folk Art Center.

Provenance: J Compton Gallery, Wimberley, Texas, USA

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#169897

Expected age wear. One front pillar has separated from the lintel above but is still intact. A small section of the branch broke away. There are a few cracks to the plexiglass windowpanes. There are also a few separate modeled aluminum foil forms that accompany the piece.