Lot 207
Black Joe Jackson (American, 1922-1997). "Hapa Wiz You Pa" house paint on plywood, n.d. Signed at lower center and titled down left margin. A stirring vignette of memory, mischief, and Southern vernacular life, "Hapa Wiz You Pa" captures the charm and humor that made Black Joe Jackson's work so singular. Painted in housepaint on a salvaged plywood board, the composition centers on a modest brown homestead beneath a swirling lavender sky. To the left, a man in a red shirt - "Pa" - is seated on a pale blue bench, gazing off to his left as he watches a child sprint away through the field. The child, dressed in white and clutching a red basket, appears mid-flight - caught in the act of either fleeing discipline or chasing freedom, depending on how you read the moment. Size: 18" W x 12" H (45.7 cm x 30.5 cm)
The title, spelled phonetically in Jackson's characteristic dialect, likely translates to "Happy with you, Pa" or "How I wish you, Pa" - a phrase rich with longing and layered sentiment. It may reflect a fond memory, a moment of misbehavior, or a deeper emotional distance between generations. The placement of the handwritten title along the left vertical margin reinforces Jackson's spoken-voice aesthetic, treating language as rhythm and memory rather than grammar.
Born to a sharecropping family near Atlanta, Georgia, and living with dyslexia, Black Joe Jackson never sought formal training. Instead, he painted on scrap wood using housepaint and intuition, spelling words how they sounded and telling stories how they felt. Often grouped with folk or outsider artists, Jackson's work is rooted in personal experience, Southern landscapes, and emotional truths.
In "Hapa Wiz You Pa", Jackson gives us more than a painted scene - he gives us a family story half-told and half-remembered, where motion, memory, and affection all tug in different directions. It's a portrait of a man watching, a child running, and the quiet weight of time between them.
About the Artist: Black Joe Jackson was a self-taught African-American artist born to a sharecropper family near Atlanta, Georgia in 1920. Jackson created paintings on wooden boards and used easily available materials such as house paint an scrap wood. He was born with dyslexia, and the writings on his paintings demonstrate this. He is oftentimes described as a folk artist or an outsider artist due to his playful, naive style. Jackson's themes reflect memories from his childhood in the South.
Provenance: private Rochester, Minnesota, USA collection, acquired from 1990 -1998
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#192006
- Condition: Painting is in excellent overall condition with suspension wire on verso for display. Signed at lower center and titled down left margin.
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