Walter Edmonds

Walter Edmonds (April 21, 1938 – June 11, 2011) was an American artist best known for the 14 murals he painted with Richard J. Watson for the Church of the Advocate in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.

Biography Walter Edmonds was born in April 21, 1938, Originally, trained as a Chef at Edward W. Bok Technical High School, he began his career in the restaurant industry. Realizing his passion for the visual arts as a young adult, he began to immerse himself into his love for painting. He attended Philadelphia College of Art, Fleisher Art Memorial, and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.

Edmonds' work was included in the 2015 exhibition We Speak: Black Artists in Philadelphia, 1920s–1970s at the Woodmere Art Museum. His work is in the collection of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. His papers are in the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives.

In 1966, Edmonds was among a group of young Black artists and students chosen to exhibit at William Penn Memorial Museum in Harrisburg by the mayor’s Committee on Human Relations. Others included Moe Brooker, Barbara Bullock, Charles Pridgen, Percy Ricks, Ellen Powell Tiberino and Leroy Johnson.