LONNIE HOLLEY
ALCHEMIST | Artist
The artist and performer, once described as a “modern-day shaman,” transforms castoff materials into madcap assemblages. His wide-ranging practice is the subject of an eponymous monograph from Rizzoli, published last month.
WHAT IS YOUR TRADEMARK? For as long as I can remember, I’ve always said “thumbs up for Mother Universe” whenever I meet someone or at the end of a conversation. I talk a lot about the three mothers: the mother that gave birth to you, Mother Earth, and Mother Universe. I’ve always tried to care deeply for all three mothers and try to honor Mother Universe in everything I do.
WHAT KEEPS YOU UP AT NIGHT? Well, literally, making art. But also worrying about the world, the only one we’ve got. My upbringing was very difficult. A lot of that was detailed in the podcast Unreformed: The Story of the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children. When you’ve lived through slavery-like conditions as a child, the demons come to visit you when you sleep. That keeps me up more than I wish it did.
“There is a porter at the Atlanta airport who always recognizes me from reading about me in the paper. He always goes out of his way to say hello and check on me when I’m coming home from a trip.”
WHAT’S SOMETHING PEOPLE GET WRONG ABOUT YOU? I’ve been called a lot of things: A visionary artist. Self-taught. An outsider. A naive artist. I’m just an artist, none of those other things. Those names cling to me like an ill-fitted suit. I’m just an artist trying to make America and the world a better and more understanding place. And I’ve learned so much from other people. Many artists go to school to learn to make art, and I’d have loved to have had that opportunity. But my grandpap taught me so much about materials and how to use them. My daddy’s mama, Momo, took me to the city landfill and taught me how to recycle and reuse things. Uncle Jesse taught me all about taking things apart. Daddy James, who married my mama, taught me how to become a brick mason and how to use concrete and mortar. Mr. and Mrs. Smith taught me to use judgment, not always a ruler—and to believe in myself. I had a different kind of school.
ARE PEOPLE EVER STARSTRUCK BY YOU? There is a porter at the Atlanta airport who always recognizes me from reading about me in the paper. He always goes out of his way to say hello and check on me when I’m coming home from a trip.
in your life?
