Nellie Ashford (born c. 1943) is a self-taught folk artist from Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. [1] Her mixed-media folk art depicts the experiences of Charlotte’s African-American community from the Jim Crow era to contemporary day in the U.S. South.
Ashford grew up in a rural part of Mecklenburg County and attended school in a segregated four-room schoolhouse. She later graduated from Plato Prince High School and earned a Bachelor's degree in psychology and social science from Shaw University. [2] She is self-trained as an artist.
Her work has been featured in a number of special exhibits since at least the early 2000s. She participated in a 2004 juried art show for the Afro-American Cultural Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, for which she earned the curator's recognition award. [3] In 2010, her show "Nellie's People" was featured at the Delta Arts Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. [4] In 2013, her work was displayed at the Gaston County Museum in Dallas, North Carolina. [5] The Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts+Culture hosted her first major-museum, solo exhibit in 2016. [6] According to the Gantt Center, the solo exhibit, titled "Nellie Ashford: Through My Eyes," communicates " cultural identity, shared community values and aesthetics." [1] [6]
During the 2012 U.S. Presidential election campaign, 11 of her works were featured at the Democratic National Convention Committee headquarters in Charlotte. [7]
In 2020, the Arts & Science Council and the Public Art Commission in partnership with the City of Charlotte commissioned a mural from Ashford to be displayed in the Charlotte Douglas International Airport. Her work, entitled "Honoring All Teachers" is displayed at Concourse A, Gate A7. [8]
Exhibitions of her works have been displayed at the Levine Museum of the New South, the Mint Museum, and Davidson College. [9] [10]
She is a four-time recipient of the Actors Theatre award and a recipient of the Priscilla Literary Award. In 2007, she was named the Harvey B. Gantt Center's (then known as the Afro-American Cultural Center) artist of the year. [2]