A white dog, speckled with orange and brown dots, stands in a green field underneath a purple sky. His red tongue hangs out of his open mouth as he pants. The yellow collar around the dog's neck tells us this dog has an owner, and so what is this dog doing alone in an empty field? Whenever asked about his work, renowned folk artist Jake McCord would always insist painting was a hobby for him, a supplement to his full-time job. Indeed, for 40 years McCord worked as the groundskeeper for Thomson, Georgia, where he soon became a local celebrity thanks to his hard-work and bright, "jolly" paintings. These paintings were showcased on his porch, where McCord said they kept him company. McCord was insistent that each piece be displayed on his porch until "it was ready to go," and only then could it be sold. Common subject matter for McCord's humorous paintings were dogs, cats, and portraits of women with prominent hairdos. These figures would be painted on large plywood boards, oftentimes with a nail hole on the top of the board from where McCord would hang his pieces. McCord passed away in 2011, and his work has since been featured at the House of Blues in Florida, the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Center in Virginia, as well as in many private collections. Artist: Jake McCord Year: 1991 JTM-#21-SUBBASMENT
