Josephus Farmer

Josephus Farmer began his public mission as an itinerant evangelical minister in St. Louis, where he received his "calling from God" in 1922. After his retirement in the late 1960s from jobs as varied as hog farmer and hotel porter, Farmer spent much time carving religious images that he sold to help finance his proselytizing journeys. Reverend Farmer painted several banners with images drawn from theological charts commonly used in the nineteenth century , which he used as preaching tools during his revival meetings. His relief carvings, usually executed in redwood painted with enamel, contain either images of American history or scenes from the Bible and often combine seemingly unrelated stories into one panel. Farmer selects biblical stories extemporaneously as he carves.

Lynda Roscoe Hartigan Made with Passion: The Hemphill Folk Art Collection in the National Museum of American Art (Washington, D.C. and London: National Museum of American Art with the Smithsonian Institution Press, 1990)