Nellie Mae Rowe Art
American, 1900-1982
Nellie Mae Rowe was born in 1900 in Fayetteville, Georgia, the ninth of 10 children. Her early life was spent in a rural farming community, where she and her siblings helped the family make a living through cotton harvesting and other farm work. Despite her busy life at the farm, Rowe developed an early love for drawing and doll-making, and her mother taught her how to make dresses and quilts. She would find time between chores, and even find places to hide, in order to continue creating.
At age 16, Rowe married her first husband, who was also a rural farm worker. During this period she found little time to make art. Her first husband passed away in 1936, but that same year she remarried. Her second husband, however, also passed away by 1948. Following these hardships, Rowe found work as a maid to support herself, and finally had amply time to explore her own artistry.
Rowe became incredibly prolific, producing drawings, dolls, sculptures made of chewing gum, and assemblages made of discarded objects including egg cartons, marbles, and other trinkets. She produced so much work that it began to fill her house and her yard, and her neighbors deemed her an eccentric and a “fortune teller”. Some locals tormented Rowe, throwing rocks, firecrackers, and rotten eggs at her house. However, over time she became a staple in her local community, dubbing her home the “playhouse”. People started to bring Rowe dolls, toys, beads, and other materials for her to use in her artwork.
Although Rowe became well-known in her community, it was not until the mid-1970s that art collectors and curators began to take notice of her vast body of work. In 1978, she had her first solo exhibition at the Alexander Gallery in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1979, she left Georgia for the only time in her life to attend an exhibition of her work at the Parsons/Dreyfus Gallery in New York City. Her work attracted audiences with its striking and fantastical imagery, as well as its fixation with religious symbolism, social commentary, and the natural world.
By the 1980s, Rowe had begun her battle with cancer. Unfortunately, due to her illness, she was unable to view her work in “Black Folk in America, 1900-1980,” a 1982 exhibition at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Rowe passed away that same year.
Nellie Mae Rowe leaves behind countless artworks completely unlike those of the trained, mainstream artists of her day. Rowe experimented with countless media, color palettes, and visual motifs, giving her work a longevity that continues to connect with new generations of collectors and curators.
Rowe’s works may be found in the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, among others.1
1
1
1
Overall Height
to
Overall Width
to
1
1
6,934
3,279
2,514
1,213
1
1
1
1
1
Artist: Nellie Mae Rowe
A Beautiful Day
By Nellie Mae Rowe
Located in Missouri, MO
A Beautiful Day, 1978
by Nellie Mae Rowe (American, 1900-1982)
Unframed: 9" x 12"
Framed: 11.25" x 14.25"
Signed and Dated Lower Left
Nellie Mae Rowe ...
Category
20th Century Folk Art Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Crayon, Pastel, Paper, Graphite
Related Items
Mid Century Abstracted San Francisco Bay Line Drawing Landscape
By Erle Loran
Located in Soquel, CA
Bold abstract geometric landscape, an expressive black and white line drawing done in pastel, by Erle Loran (American, 1905-1999). Unsigned, but was acquired from the artist's estate. Presented in a new black mat with foam core backing. Provenance: Estate of Earle Loran; David Carlson...
Category
Mid-20th Century Abstract Geometric Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Pastel
H 15 in W 18 in D 0.25 in
"Linear Landscape" Landscape Drawing Large size Made inItaly
By Marilina Marchica
Located in Agrigento, AG
Landscape
mixed media on vintage paper
97x37 cm
2019
the artwork have a frame
50x110 cm
Ready to hang
Original Art
The major creative focus of Marilina Marchica has always been w...
Category
2010s Contemporary Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Oil Pastel, Archival Paper, Graphite
H 19.69 in W 43.31 in D 1.38 in
Minimal Landscape, Original Pastel Drawing, Seascape, Sea, Beach
Located in AIX-EN-PROVENCE, FR
Work : Original Drawing, Unique Work, Handmade Artwork. The work has been treated with Archival Varnish with UV protection and it is not framed.
Medium : Soft Pastel on archival pap...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Pastel, Archival Paper
H 11.7 in W 8.27 in D 0.12 in
Helen Kalvak Inuit Women mid century modern art outsider folk art minimalist
Located in Norfolk, GB
A fabulous piece of Inuit history and a compelling drawing of everyday life for an Inuit family. The artwork is also a strong example of a natural understanding of perspective from an artist with no formal art training. The lines and mark-making are interesting both in the fact that we can see the artist working out the image by the faint rubbings out around the animals horns (see image). The lines also appear to reflect Helen's own facial beautifying tattoos; at the time of her death in 1984 was one of the last women to carry the facial tattoos of her group.
The drawing was purchased from Professor Leo Bushman, part of the Faculty at the Calgary University. Bushman was helping the Co-op promote Helen Kalvak...
Category
1960s Folk Art Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Pencil
Mid Century Abstracted Industrial Cityscape
By Erle Loran
Located in Soquel, CA
Bold mid century abstracted landscape by Erle Loran (American, 1905-1999). Unsigned, but was acquired from the estate of Ruth Loran (wife of artist). Presented in a new black mat with foam core backing. Provenance: Estate of Earle Loran; David Carlson...
Category
Mid-20th Century Abstract Geometric Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Pastel
"Linear Landscape" Abstract Landscape Drawing Ready to hang
By Marilina Marchica
Located in Agrigento, AG
Landscape
mixed media on vintage paper
97x37 cm
2019
the artwork have a frame
50x110 cm
The major creative focus of Marilina Marchica has always been with urban architecture and ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Oil Pastel, Archival Paper, Graphite
H 19.69 in W 43.31 in D 1.38 in
"Chimneys at Dusk", Small Pastel San Francisco Abstract Urban Landscape
Located in Soquel, CA
Abstracted Bay Area skyline against a pink sunset creates beautiful and soft geometries in this small pastel urban landscape by San Francisco artist Chris Cacciotti (American, 20th C...
Category
1990s Abstract Impressionist Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Pastel, Watercolor
H 16.5 in W 17.13 in D 0.75 in
Blue sky over the loch
Located in Deddington, GB
Blue sky over the loch by Natalie Bird [2022]
original
Pastel
Image size: H:36 cm x W:28 cm
Complete Size of Unframed Work: H:25 cm x W:20 cm x D:0.5cm
Sold Unframed
Please note tha...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Impressionist Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Pastel
Untitled, Abstract Expressionist Outsider Art, Pastel on Black Paper.
Located in Cotignac, FR
Abstract expressionist, pastel on black paper by English artist John McQuirk. Signed bottom right.
McQuirk's work is an example of outsider art or art brut.
Born in 1933, the arti...
Category
Late 20th Century Outsider Art Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Oil Pastel
H 34.65 in W 26.78 in D 0.4 in
Mid Century Abstracted Bay Area Landscape, Black & White Pastel Drawing
By Erle Loran
Located in Soquel, CA
Bold abstract black and white pastel landscape drawing by Erle Loran (American, 1905-1999). Unsigned, but was acquired from the estate of the artist. Presented in a new black mat with foam core backing. Provenance: Estate of Earle Loran; David Carlson...
Category
Mid-20th Century Abstract Geometric Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Pastel
Erle LoranMid Century Abstracted Bay Area Landscape, Black & White Pastel Drawing , mid 20th Century
H 15 in W 18 in D 0.25 in
Bellagio, Lake Como.
By Hercules Brabazon Brabazon
Located in Cotignac, FR
Mid 19th century pastel drawing view of Bellagio on Lake Como by Hercules Brabazon Brabazon. The work is under its original mount and initial signed (HBB) b...
Category
1860s Romantic Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Pastel, Pencil
A view over the loch
Located in Deddington, GB
A view over the loch by Natalie Bird [2022]
original
Pastel
Image size: H:36 cm x W:28 cm
Complete Size of Unframed Work: H:25 cm x W:20 cm x D:0.5cm
Sold Unframed
Please note that ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Impressionist Nellie Mae Rowe Art
Materials
Paper, Pastel
Nellie Mae Rowe art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Nellie Mae Rowe art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Nellie Mae Rowe in crayon, graphite, paper and more. Not every interior allows for large Nellie Mae Rowe art, so small editions measuring 12 inches across are available.