Leo Twiggs
{{short description|American artist}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Leo Twiggs
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1934|02|13}}
| birth_place = St. Stephen, South Carolina, United States
| known_for = Batik process, founder of I.P. Stanback Museum
| education = Claflin University (BA), Art Institute of Chicago, New York University (MA), University of Georgia (Ed.D)
| occupation = Painter, educator
}}
Leo Franklin Twiggs (born 1934) is an American painter and educator.{{Cite book |last=Fax |first=Elton C. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AcdPAAAAMAAJ |title=Black Artists of the New Generation |date=1977 |publisher=Dodd, Mead |isbn=978-0-396-07434-2 |pages=325 |language=en}} He developed the Fine Art Department at South Carolina State University, where he taught from 1973 until 1998. He has presented over fifty solo exhibitions during his career.
Biography
Leo Franklin Twiggs was born on February 13, 1934, in St. Stephen, South Carolina.{{Cite web |date=September 2009 |title=Converse Exhibits Works by Nationally Renowned Artist Leo Twiggs |url=https://www.spartanburg.com/news/hugo0909.html |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=Spartanburg News}}{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eZZPAAAAMAAJ |title=Who's Who in American Art |date=1976 |publisher=R. R. Bowker LLC |isbn=978-0-8352-0850-5 |pages=573 |language=en}}
Twiggs received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Claflin University in 1956; studied at the Art Institute of Chicago; and his Master of Arts degree from New York University in 1964. At NYU he studied with Hale Woodruff and Jason Seley. In 1970, Twiggs became the first African American student to receive a Doctor of Education (Ed.D) from the University of Georgia, where he studied with Samuel Adler.{{Cite web |date=2023-07-18 |title=Virginia Theological Seminary awards the Dean’s Cross to artist Leo Twiggs |url=https://vts.edu/press-release/virginia-theological-seminary-awards-the-deans-cross-to-artist-leo-twiggs/ |access-date=2025-02-20 |website=Virginia Theological Seminary |language=en-US}}
As a professor of art at South Carolina State University, he developed the Art Department and I.P. Stanback Museum. Twiggs was named professor emeritus in 2000. He was the first visual artist to receive the Verner Award (Governor’s Trophy) for outstanding contributions to the arts in South Carolina.
Artwork
Twiggs' paintings utilize a variation of the batik process which he began experimenting with in 1964. This process of painting allows him to create the illusion of subtle textures. His chosen subject matter has included the iconography of the American Civil War, the Confederate flag, Blues music, and rivers. Twiggs' work deals with the role of relics, images, and icons in the culture of the South Eastern United States.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.free-times.com/Reviews/art_reviews/twiggs.html Leo Twiggs and the Icons of Memory]
- [http://www.hamptoniiigallery.com/index.php?id=420 Leo Twiggs at the Hampton III Gallery]
- [http://www.leotwiggs.com/ Official website]
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Category:20th-century American painters
Category:American male painters
Category:21st-century American painters
Category:Artists from Charleston, South Carolina
Category:University of Georgia alumni
Category:South Carolina State University faculty
Category:Claflin University alumni
Category:New York University alumni
Category:People from St. Stephen, South Carolina
Category:Painters from South Carolina
Category:20th-century American male artists
Category:21st-century American male artists