She never knew the likes of a store-bought dress. Neither did her three older sisters. Each migrant daughter wore clothes hand sewn by their mother, often times made from grain sacks. Her favorite was this clover-patterned number.
My mom's mom, Viola Davis, was born in 1926 in Hoxie, Kansas. Grandma was one of five children growing up in a small town on the northeastern plains Kansas during the Great Depression. She, like her siblings and so many children of that time, wore clothes beautifully hand sewn from flour and grain sacks--the inspiration for my painting.
Mom tells me how much my grandma adored the flour sack dresses her mom made. The clover-patterned number in my painting was a pattern I fell in love with during my research on the history of flour sack dresses. I like to believe that my grandma would approve of this painting.
Here is a photograph of my grandma, Viola Davis, in the early 1930s alongside two schoolmates. She is wearing one of the flour-sack dresses her mom made. I think she looks absolutely beautiful!
My grandma, Viola Davis, and schoolmates in the early 1930s - Hoxie, KS
"Faded Clover" - limited edition giclée print Thank you for allowing me to share stories about my Dust Bowl Glimpses paintings. Working on this collection has truly been a labor of love.
Cheers, Mandy
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