Herbert Singleton

Herbert Singleton (1945–2007) was an American bas-relief sculptor and painter based in New Orleans, Louisiana. His work documented the tribulations of life in the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans.

Life and career Herbert Singleton was born the eldest of eight children on May 31, 1945, to Elizabeth and Herbert Singleton Sr. Singleton recalled that one day when he was ten years old, his father left the house to buy a pack of cigarettes and never returned. His mother, working at a hospital, supported the family on her single income. He attended school until the seventh grade, although other accounts claim the sixth grade. He worked most of his youth in a steel factory and as a bridge painter. He was arrested as a young adult for various narcotic crimes and spent thirteen years in the Louisiana State Penitentiary between 1967 and 1986. After his release, he began making little clay snake sculptures for the Voodoo Museum in New Orleans in 1970. Distraught by the fragility of unfired clay, Singleton switched his medium to wood and began carving long ax handles into walking sticks, primarily used as weapons. Reflecting on his artistic process, Singleton said, "When the river was low, I would find a plank of wood to carve. I would look at it and wonder if someone's life fell apart."

He painted his reliefs and carvings with saturated enamel primary colors. His early carvings, "killer sticks," and stools depict intricate scenes of violence, lynchings, drugs, dealing, prostitution, and other everyday scenes from the inner city of New Orleans. His stylized, dramatic narratives come from personal experience living amidst violent crime, police brutality, and financial instability. In 1980, his sister and two friends were murdered by three white police officers searching for an African American person who shot another white officer. They took Singleton in for questioning, beat, and suffocated him for twelve hours. None of the officers were charged with the murders or cruel punishment.

Collections The following museums have works by Singleton in their permanent collections:

Smithsonian American Art Museum Minneapolis Institute of Art High Museum of Art Philadelphia Museum of Art Ogden Museum of Southern Art Pérez Art Museum Miami Contemporary Art Center Birmingham Museum of Art Museum of African American Life and Culture