Hope Atkinson

MARCIA WEBER / ART OBJECTS
1050 Woodley Road
Montgomery, Alabama 36106
(334) 262-5349
Fax: (334) 567-0060
weberart@mindspring.com

Hope Joyce Atkinson

Hope was born December 10, 1946 in Minnesota. She was one of six children. Her mother left the family when Hope was four. Her father tried to keep all of the children together but soon Hope was placed in a foster home so she was separated from her family at an early age.

View Works by a Specific Artist

"Holiness Church, Dothan, Alabama" acrylic on paper in black frame 14" x 16" $350 (9491)

Hope was anxious to leave the foster home and looked for any way to achieve independence. She joined the Merchant Marines and worked on the ore boats on the Great Lakes for many years.

"The Watermelon Truck" acrylic on paper in black frame 12" x 19" $350 (9300)

Hope eventually got her own small fish tug which she restored into a houseboat. Unfortunately she had an accident out of her boat and was lucky to have guided herself to shore. During months of hospitalization she received a papier mache gift which inspired her to create.

"Boiled Peanuts" acrylic on paper in black frame 12" x 19" $350 (9301)


	When Hope was lonely for someone to talk to, she began to create "toys" and masks from papier mache and found objects. As visitors came to see Hope, these objects of hers became a topic of conversation, she was encouraged to make others. Now years later, some of Hope's original "toys" and masks are in her amazing spartan tile barn near the shore of Lake Superior. Many of the techniques she used in starting her sculpture, she remembers as the same one she and her siblings used to create their own toys when she was young.

"Crawdad's Laundry" acrylic on wood in black shadowbox 8.5" x 16.5" $375 (9292)


	Her colorful work revolves around spiritual and political themes mixed with a wry sense of humor and strong social awareness. Many of her works are autobiographical in nature and are combined into elaborate groupings inspired by Hope's life experiences and reflections. Hope has fought depression with medication and through creating ironic sagas told through her works. More recently, she has travelled to New York to attend showings of her work and has been an artist-in-residence at artists' colonies when invited.

"At Crawdad's Laundry" (triptych) acrylic on three wood panels in black shadowbox, each panel 7" x 5.5", $600 (9293)


	Hope has several cats and spends much of her time now creating her art and tending to her garden or woodpile. She has a splendid garden of colorful flowers, complete with a flowing well. -- Marcia Weber