Jack Savitsky the coal miner folk artist two early works from 1965

Jack Savitsky, AKA “Coal Miner Jack” (1910 - 1991) was in fact a coal miner with a 6th grade education from Pennsylvania who developed Black Lung Disease in 1960. This forced him to leave the job he followed his father into. His son Jack Savitt suggested Savitsky take up art not long after he became sick in 1960. He achieved great success for a folk artist primarily as his well-known “Train in a Coal Town” painting was featured in 1974 on the cover of Herbert Hemphill’s book “Twentieth Century American Folk Art and Artists” in 1974, A book which belongs in any art collection and which frankly remains the best source on this thing of ours. Hemphill, or “Bert” as known was preternaturally inclusive in the self-taught masters he first brought to the attention of many collectors. Now that used books are affordable, an essential purchase. I was proud to visit and call Bert a friend, and I was also proud to visit Jack Savitt and his wife Mary Lou many times at their house where they continued to sell the work by Savitsky until they both also passed. In my mind, all legends now but at one time approachable to a novice collector like myself. Hemphill passed in 1998. Unlike the familiar coal mining themes of Savitsky’s work, he was prolific in all manner of subjects as the rather strange early drawings here reveal. These are 9 x 12 or so and on paper unlike the hundreds of small drawings he did on the back of cut-up cereal boxes later in life. His work is included in a dozen prominent museums today. The photo was given to me by painter Sterling Strauser, who knew Savitsky and many notable artists from an earlier era of the appreciation of self-taught art. NOTE there are several fake works attributed to the artist but being offered on eBay currently. Don’t be misled. Pair of Jack Savitsky drawings 1965 collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb the Blog.