About the Artist
A native of Southeastern Kentucky, Barbara Willingham expresses the Appalachian culture through her pencil, watercolor, and oil renderings. Willingham considers herself an Appalachian genre artist.
Featured Works
Daddy's Moon Pie
- Dimensions: 9.5" x 11"
A memorable event in Willingham's life was when her dad, sheathed in black coal dust, would come home after a long, hard day in the mines. Hopeful to find a sweet leftover, the children would rummage the lunch box which they had just snatched from the tired, calloused hands of their dad. In past times in the mountains or rural areas of Appalachia, "store-bought" treats were scarce in a household. A favorite snack of coal miners was a Moon Pie which often was purposefully left untouched.
This work is dedicated to the memory of Benny Willingham and his 28 fellow coal miners who lost their lives on April 06, 2010 in W. Virginia.