Willie White: Visionary Artist

On display in the Beau Rivage Resort & Casino Gallery / Gallery of African American Art

This exhibit will showcase the paintings of Mississippi native and self-taught artist, William White (1908 - 2001), highlighting pieces from his fifty year career. White began painting in the 1950’s, taking inspiration from the culture of New Orleans, initially using his front porch as his canvas. By the 1960’s, White had transitioned to felt tip markers to create works that explored religious imagery, prehistoric creatures, animals, and abstract geometric works. White’s bold colors and simple shapes form works that capture his inspirations of “God and faraway places.” 

his self-taught, folk artist never achieved the prestige that some of his contemporaries enjoyed but his art has found a home in museums like the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, the New Orleans Museum of art, and the Birmingham Museum of Art, as well as in the collections of art connoisseurs.

Exhibition overview from museum website