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THE DELTA WEEKLYVLEON KOURY-DELTA SCULPTORBY LOUIS!: JSkRICC.K SMITHBehind - b„..y i.m,. ^ in „ lw.nmct. clot acctlnn Ol the town of Greenville 1* (he tiny studio ot twcnly-aevvi'-ycar old Mhuialppi Sculptor. Loan Koury, whose Negro 8af m.tv-ftitcd the State of Minsk-fappi in the (ocean! Nations! EchiMbnn ot Am-iicnn Ait uoaduetcit by the Municipal Ai! eomiriiUee in Now Y«k C.ty, thu year.uro- lt;ony nttkir. tl* head nf h., diSCOwer, Will Percy Above, .1 close to ol the hr.*;I !oii! tought him «.nt in his (athei's groe-cry 'ton mol ho conducted re to the studio. It opens direeUy cm n lid- itrm aint wc entered a man arotcd at tl. pwnu looked op and (railed, lie to Mi Kouiy's model alio In-termed in art and h« was copying notes fioio a aliucl ot (wpt, picppivi agiiiu*. the piano. Every thing in the iw,i wan painted nay and yet there wn« to dr.hncw about it TYrn *nft tints of the rvekgrounri drought out tint tarra cotta colored curtain, and the clay heads that wcie pluto! about llic roomWe moved to the window The gray light which ktrrimed through foli mi the green clay figure ot a negro worker pausing (rum his labois, a comprem worke: with harp chest, gloved lords and rringed it*, s. Tbo figure syniholiwd the cnt.ii negro race, the laborer In tlw collm fields Uio gins, and the compicracs of the nxithlaiit. In it m the physical it length of th« rjee Jivi the Joy and ladiifu of continued laborI want to do more and mare puses of tin-negro Ja I 10- lum m Hit every day life as he works and an he plays. Leon Kftiiry snjrs. Then; Wil! tie many of them ue.d thin some day f can go Into the range of thcu omotiewn, but that will be a long tin*- of/ *Mr Kuury's interest In sculpturing is only Uiiev yeara old. Up to thsi time Ik bail rather Imagined that be could write, but when he took some of Im work to Will Percy, of Gi—nville to critlciio, II.. xkrtchei ill'Mliating the atorwe 1*00101 mot- import-.-nt to Mr. Percy than did the writing Acting ii(sm this iu*ylt;-«tiin, Leeo Koury ga,xlt; up th- idea ol writing and turned his attention to akclchttt Pven then hii subject was the r.egio TVo next stop was the modeling in clay and it wax here that the true genius of the young urtat began to inaic ilwlf krown.His fust butt m !0 gi*»1 that when Malvina Hoffman. outstanding Amarinin sculptor saw a pholcgiaph of It ihe sent her own troh for him to work with Mrs. ColoPntU-r. wife of the evmprrer wanted to buy htt fit at head but ho r-fures to Mil it and ha, liecsentrd it to Mr Paiey, whose frrmdship and encouragement meant an much to himKlliiit Clark. 1.10 self-taught m art has advised agair.at ft. Koury looking for formal training He foiled that !t might ta»e from him the gpork oral give little to bis technique.I asked him about going away to study.“I do rot want to be raid. Wlul I wart to dll I. the negro 11 I go sway I wilt be out of touch with him and ,» life. My models come and gu jbont me every day or.d what 1 will gam in study, I wil! lose In contacts.He lold ua cf Die difficulty o( getting them to pose lor him; how they taw no hro.1t- in theli own faces lie dcplurod the tendency of the negro race to ape the white ■nan ural lux wayr.“The cmly thing tliey arc proud r! is their unusual bodily strength. he said. Both of 0-turncd to luck a! the mwralar chest of .the day figure outlined against the window. 15* :nu«lei In his arms and link stood out in tl* gray light.'They,look in the mirror and ail that they rec is a tar- not like the white foe*-, about than. They do not the spirit bib 1 ml their IbWb. the wcakne.w and the strength and III* ipirit Airing through.Ho told us of an old negro woman he had wen In his father's store and how We had C».ilo.sl o« Pw 8n«t
Newspaper Details
Greenville Delta Weekly
Greenville, Mississippi, US
Mon, Dec 27, 1937
Page 11
Full Page
Clipped by
Tyler D.
MS, USA 06 Apr 2016
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