Exhibitions: Leroy Almon KY

Leroy Almon: The Miracle Book
May 7 - June 12, 2021
Lexington, KY

“Your life is a book. And every day is a page … and one day that book will be read to you and you can’t deny it because you’ve written it.”*

So went God’s words to preacher and woodcarver Elijah Pierce. Trained in woodcarving and dedicated to his faith, Pierce incorporated this vision into his work all his life, eventually passing it on to his gifted apprentice: Leroy Almon.

A non denominational preacher and woodcarver, Almon’s work delivers a serialized telling of the life of Christ through iconographic illustrations. Rendered in acrylic on thin pieces of soft wood, the framed pages are joined with pieces of rope, resulting in a series of bulky and Biblical flip books titled: “The Miracle Book”.

Each of Almon’s tomes address a sacred event in the Christian consciousness – Crucifixion, Resurrection, Paradise, and beyond. The scriptures of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are retold through this pictorial narrative, portraying Jesus in his most astonishing moments – forgiving the sinful, healing the sick, and raising the dead. Such parables serve to remind believers of Christ’s sacrifices and miracles, while Edenic scenes allude to the afterlife of faithful, Christian souls.

Leroy Almon spent the first half of his life as a shoe salesman until meeting Pierce in 1981. The two became friends, and Almon’s apprenticeship began, offering him a way to express his ideas and beliefs through low relief wood carvings and painted scenes. Elijah Pierce’s visions, as well as his “The Book of Wood” (1932) served as a starting point for Almon’s many volumes. In elaborating on Pierce’s designs and methods, Almon built upon a generational tradition, ultimately maintaining a full-time artistic career until the end of his life.

In addition to his painted volumes, Almon is known for his low relief wood carvings fashioned from a pocket knife and a hand chisel. These other works span beyond the Bible, addressing socio-political themes and the observations of his lived experience. Yet Almon’s religious tradition informs all of his work beyond “The Miracle Book,” placing historic events and political institutions in a context of good or evil.

Leroy Almon was born in Tallapoosa, Georgia in 1938, and passed away in Tallapoosa, Georgia in 1997. Leroy Almon: The Miracle Book is the first exhibition dedicated to his artistic endeavors separate from Elijah Pierce. Almon’s works are in the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the High Museum, and the Minneapolis Institute of Art, among others.

*June Donmoyer, ​“Elijah Pierce: Woodcarver,” Antique Review Preview, August 1985, and Judith Fradin, ​“Adapting to the New World,” Footsteps, n.d.