Marion Perkins
1908 - 1961
Marion Marche Perkins was an American sculptor who taught and exhibited at Chicago's South Side Community Art Center and exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago. Perkins is widely considered an important artist of the Chicago Renaissance.
Career
Perkins purchased a newspaper stand in 1936 and started carving from discarded materials during the work day. Peter Pollack of the Works Progress Administration's Illinois Art Project and Southside Community Art Center noticed Perkins' work after passing the newsstand and soon introduced him to Simon Gordon, a sculptor who assisted Perkins with his formal training. He recognized his talents and wanted to help him. This is where Perkins met Simon Gordon who was a major figure in launching his career. He then received commission, through the help of Gordon, from the Baltimore Hotel in South Haven, Michigan. He was to create 6 large statues of children in Dutch Attire. He won many more awards but failed to ever reach national recognition. One of Perkins biggest clients was the IBM corporation in 1947. Perkins received a $2,400 scholarship immediately after losing his job with the USPS for not taking the necessary "loyalty oath," recently installed by Truman. He then went on to create his most famous piece ever, "Man of Sorrows" which won first prize in the university's "Chicago and Vicinity" series as well as the prestigious Pauline Palmer Purchase Prize. He began to teach, and eventually became a fixture at the South Side Community Art Center and the Hull House. Also around this time, the famous poet of the Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes, praised Perkins. Posthumously, his family continued his legacy and set up a foundation in his name. Perkins taught sculpture at the Southside Community Art Center and Jackson State University.
He continued to work and exhibit until his death in 1961.
Text courtesy of Wikipedia, 2024
