When asked, “Is this art?”, as he was using a heavy ice pick to bore a hole, or “eye”, into an old metal can on the floor of his bedroom, Hawkins Bolden’s perplexed response was, “Art? What do ya mean? This, here, this is to scare the birds away.”
Hawkins Bolden (1914-2005) was born in the Bailey’s Bottom section of Memphis, TN, to parents of African American, Creole and Native American descent. …
Hawkins Bolden (1914-2005) was born in the Bailey’s Bottom section of Memphis, TN, to parents of African American, Creole and Native American descent. Around the age of 7, he was seriously injured while playing baseball when his twin brother swung for and missed an errant pitch that Bolden, who was catcher, stood up to catch. The injury led to …
