33 Facts About Palmer Hayden

Palmer Hayden sketched, painted in both oils and watercolors, and was a prolific artist of his era.

Originally named Peyton Cole Hedgeman, Hayden was born on January 15,1890, in Wide water, Virginia.

Palmer Hayden was introduced to the arts by his older brother who took up drawing at an early age.

Palmer Hayden moved to Washington, DC during his teenage years in order to find work to make a living.

Palmer Hayden worked as a carrier and an errand boy while finding inspiration for his work from the everyday bustle of the city.

Palmer Hayden had placed an ad in the local paper for an artist's assistant, and was bewildered when he was rejected for being African-American upon arriving at the interview.

Discouraged, Palmer Hayden decided to go into employment as a laborer for the Buffalo Bill Circus and then the Ringling Brothers Circus.

Palmer Hayden bounced from occupation to occupation with little commitment, then decided to enter the army's black company stationed in the Philippines.

Palmer Hayden was assigned to the 10th Cavalry at West Point where his role was taking care and training the horses that the cadets learned to ride on.

Palmer Hayden pursued artistic professionalism by studying charcoal drawing at Columbia University as he simultaneously worked nights at the post office.

When Palmer Hayden decided his post office job took up too much of his time, he quit and began janitorial services in various apartment buildings throughout New York City.

Palmer Hayden was hired to clean Perard's studio and was encouraged to continue to develop his art.

In 1925, Palmer Hayden had an opportunity to study under Perard at the Cooper Union in New York City.

Palmer Hayden decided to enter and in 1926, he won a sum of money and a gold medal for his painting Schooners after being recognized as the recipient of the Distinguished Achievement in Visual Arts in the Harmon Foundation's first awards ceremony.

Palmer Hayden did not enroll in art school there but rather learned from experience.

Palmer Hayden captured not only Parisian society, but the integration of Afro-European into the upscale environment.

Palmer Hayden was mentored for a short while by an artist named Clivette Le Fevre, but ultimately, the relationship ended because of Le Fevre's disbelief in Hayden's talents.

Palmer Hayden was particularly fond of Concarneau, a small village primarily sustained by fishermen, and painted several scenes of the town, one of which being Andree de la Mer.

Palmer Hayden visited several museums and a variety of exhibits, such as the Louvre, and found inspiration within its walls.

Palmer Hayden became acquainted with philosopher Alain Locke, who showed him African art he had collected from his extensive travels.

Palmer Hayden was fascinated by the establishment of colonial Northern African towns and sketched what he saw in museums and exhibits.

Palmer Hayden remained in New York City, where he had lived before going abroad, and upon his return, he became a Works Progress Administration artist with an impressive salary of about $30 weekly.

In contrast to his active involvement with African culture and racism abroad, Palmer Hayden painted mostly buildings and landscapes at this time.

Palmer Hayden's paintings have been described by some critics as primitive and demeaning for depicting xenophobic stereotypes of African Americans by exaggerating bosoms, lips, and nostrils and portraying the mass consumption of watermelon and other foods associated with black racism, such as in The Watermelon Race.

However, while depictions of African-American life are what he is most remembered for, they are not his sole claim to fame; Palmer Hayden's career began with landscape portrayal and this continued simultaneously alongside his racially influenced art, with nature originally more prominent than the depictions of African-American life.

Palmer Hayden branching out artistically became more evident as his work became more outspoken and experimental.

Inevitably, Palmer Hayden was scrutinized by both the black and white community as problematic for seemingly endorsing negative stereotypes in this painting as well.

Ten years after his initial visit in 1926, Palmer Hayden returned to Paris briefly; little else is known about this visit.

Palmer Hayden was back in New York within a year and at the age of 50, he married Miriam Huffman.

Palmer Hayden decided in 1944 to begin a new project, which resulted in a three-year effort that culminated his most fulfilling works: The John Henry series.

Any other explanations for why Palmer Hayden felt so strongly about John Henry and the series as a whole are unclear and unspecified, but are most likely linked to his proud ties to the African-American community.

An example of this was seen in 1966, when Palmer Hayden wrote to William Booth, the Chairman of the City Commission on Human Rights, regarding the advocacy for an equal number of African Americans, Latinos, and white people on the board to prevent mistreatment fueled by prejudice and power.

Palmer Hayden died on February 18,1973, shortly after receiving a grant to depict African American soldiers between the world wars.