About
African-American painter of colorful, lively landscapes and portraits. Such paintings as "Little Brown Girl" from 1927 and "Winter Landscape" from 1945 were coveted by such museums as the Indianapolis Museum of Art.
Before Fame
He rose to local fame after his work was featured in the Tenth Annual Exhibition of Works by Indiana Artists at the Herron School of Art in 1917. Still, he was forced to earn a living in the family trucking business and by opening his own carpet cleaning business.
Trivia
He was commissioned by the Works Progress Administration to paint a mural for Crispus Attucks High School; however, his mural's subjects - metal workers - were not to the liking of the school's principal.
Family Life
His grandfather, Shephard Hardrick, was a Kentucky landowner who relocated to Indianapolis to escape The Night Riders, the group that would become the Ku Klux Klan.
Associated With
He and fellow American painter Walter Anderson both turned to mural painting during the Great Depression.
