Oliver LaGrone facts for kids

Oliver LaGrone (December 9, 1906 – October 15, 1995) was an African-American sculptor, poet, educator, and humanitarian. He created art that honored the strength and achievements of African Americans.

His sculptures can be seen at several places. These include campuses of The Pennsylvania State University, The State Museum of Pennsylvania, and the Albuquerque Museum. Some of his art is also held in private collections. A special scholarship was even created in his name in 1974. It helps students from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, go to college.

Early Life and Family

Oliver LaGrone was born on December 9, 1906, in McAlester, Oklahoma, in what was then called Indian Territory. This was just before Oklahoma became a state.

His father, William Lee LaGrone, was born after slavery ended. He moved to Indian Territory because it offered more freedom. William had left Mississippi after a difficult event. He married Lula Evelyn Cochran in Alabama, and they moved to Texas for safety.

Oliver's father was educated and served on the school board. He was also a pastor in the African Methodist Episcopal Zion church. Education was very important to him, especially teaching Black people about their heritage. Oliver said his father was a "gifted writer" and "extremely creative."

His mother was also a big influence on his art and feelings. Oliver said he learned to speak well by listening to his parents' "beautiful voices." The LaGrone family owned land and were important community leaders. In 1929, they moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, seeking peace.

College Years and Early Art

Studying at Howard University

In 1928, Oliver's older brother, Hobart, invited him to Washington, D.C. Oliver enrolled at Howard University, planning to become a lawyer.

At Howard, Oliver worked closely with Carter G. Woodson, known as the "Father of Black History." In 1929, Oliver helped Woodson by interviewing people in many states for a book. He also sold books about Black culture. Oliver also learned about unions from a professor, Ralph Bunche.

Art in New Mexico

The Great Depression meant Oliver had to leave Howard after his first year. His father passed away, and his mother was in a car accident. Oliver and his brother opened a funeral home to support their family. This work helped Oliver learn about anatomy, which later helped his sculpting.

Oliver felt a strong desire to create art. He sculpted using pinyon pine wood, which was common in New Mexico. One of his early sculptures, called "Black", was made in 1930. It showed a proud human figure with chained hands. This powerful sculpture deeply moved many people.

University of New Mexico

Oliver worked odd jobs in Albuquerque. A woman he worked for admired his art and took him to the president of the University of New Mexico (UNM). This helped him enroll in 1934. He studied sociology and fine arts.

He became a teaching assistant to sculptor William Emmet Burk, Jr. This helped him combine his feelings with his art. A journalist named Ernie Pyle saw Oliver's work at a university art show. Pyle wrote about Oliver's talent in a newspaper column in 1938. He predicted Oliver would become a famous sculptor.

Works Progress Administration

Oliver LaGrone was one of the artists supported by the Federal Art Project. This was part of the Works Progress Administration, a government program during the Great Depression. In 1937, he won a contest to create a sculpture for the new Carrie Tingley Children's Hospital. This hospital helped children with polio.

His sculpture, Mercy, showed his memories of his mother caring for him when he had malaria as a child. The original sculpture was made of marblestone. In 1991, it was recast in bronze. One bronze copy is at the University of New Mexico hospital. Another is in the sculpture garden of the Albuquerque Museum of Art and History.

Marriage and Family

Oliver graduated from the University of New Mexico in 1938. That same year, he married Irmah Cooke, who was a playwright and poet. Her father had been a newspaper editor who was murdered for supporting African Americans. To be near Irmah's family, they moved to Michigan. Oliver worked in the family's real estate business. Their daughter, Lotus Joy, was born in 1940.

Art and Activism in Detroit

LaGrone with a small model of his bust of Harriet Tubman (his sculpture Black in background), Cranbrook Academy of Art, 1942.

Cranbrook Academy of Art

In 1941, Oliver and his family moved to Detroit. His wife encouraged him to explore Cranbrook Academy of Art. There, a famous Swedish sculptor named Carl Milles invited Oliver to be his student. Oliver became the first African American to attend Cranbrook, studying there from 1941 to 1942.

Milles helped Oliver get a grant for his sculpture studies. Oliver's tuition was also covered by a scholarship. After Oliver's death, his daughter donated his papers and photos to Cranbrook's archives.

Working for the United Auto Workers

Oliver wanted to help fight in World War II, but an old football injury stopped him from joining the military. In 1942, he took a job at Ford Motors. However, work accidents led him to work for the United Automobile Workers union. From 1943 to 1948, he directed their visual education department. He traveled the country, speaking and showing films to union workers.

Oliver felt a pull between his art and his desire to help people. He became part of Detroit's growing Black artist community. This was similar to the Harlem Renaissance in New York. Both movements focused on Black literature, music, theater, art, and politics. During this time, he wrote his first poems, which he collected in his 1949 book Footfalls.

Standing Up for Justice

Oliver LaGrone knew Paul Robeson, a famous singer, actor, and civil rights activist. Both men were interested in football, law, and the arts. During a time when people were unfairly accused of being communists, Oliver was asked to give information about Robeson. Oliver refused.

Because of his refusal, Oliver faced harassment and threats. He lost his job and had to sell pots and pans door-to-door to make a living. Later, Oliver created a sculpture of Paul Robeson for The Pennsylvania State University. It was unveiled in 1986 and is now in the Paul Robeson Cultural Center.

Teaching and Advocacy

Public School Teacher

From 1954 to 1969, Oliver LaGrone taught in Detroit public schools. He taught arts and crafts and later became a high school teacher of African-American history. He also earned teaching certificates in special education and art from Wayne State University. His teaching career happened alongside his artistic and poetic achievements in Detroit.

Artist and Advocate

Oliver believed that art and helping society were connected. He sculpted a bust of George Crockett Jr., a civil rights activist and judge. Oliver also served on the Michigan Council on the Arts and the African Art Gallery Fund Committee. He was a lifelong member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

He once said, "To me the artist should put being a great human being before being an artist." He felt torn between studying history and sociology and creating poetry and art.

Oliver's poems appeared in magazines like The Negro Digest and the New York Times Sunday Book Review. He read his poetry in public and on the radio. In 1963, he published They Speak of Dawns, celebrating 100 years since the Emancipation Proclamation. He won a poetry prize in 1966 and his poems were included in seven anthologies.

He often showed his art, judged art shows, and gave lectures in Detroit. His 1958 sculpture, The Dancer, won an award. It was inspired by Pearl Primus, a dancer and anthropologist who helped introduce African dance to America. In 1964, he was asked to create a sculpture of the poet Langston Hughes. This sculpture is now at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in New York City.

African Art Influence

In 1968, Oliver was invited to Togo, West Africa, to learn about West African culture. He learned about the ancient Benin Bronzes, which are amazing cast bronze sculptures. This deepened his understanding of African art.

Oliver later told a reporter, "My African ancestors invented the lost-wax method of casting, so whenever I work in bronze I am reminded that I am carrying on the work begun by my people." He felt a strong connection to this ancient art form.

In 1970, the Detroit City Council praised Oliver for his "academic standing and artistic gift" and his "human sensitivity." This was as he prepared to leave Detroit.

"Odyssey of the Afro-American and His Art"

Oliver met comedian and civil rights activist Dick Gregory. Gregory was already using some of Oliver's poetry in his shows. This inspired Oliver to create a series called "Odyssey of the Afro-American and His Art." He traveled to 24 states, giving talks and showing his sculptures.

He would explain the inspiration behind his art and recite his poetry. He wanted to promote respect for Black culture and history. His talks focused on topics like "The Black Aesthetic" and "History's Roots in Art." Through his realistic sculptures of Black faces, he highlighted the contributions of Black people to America.

The Pennsylvania State University Years

Faculty Member

One of Oliver's trips brought him to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. A friend invited him to speak at The Pennsylvania State University (PSU). This led to Oliver being asked to teach art classes and lecture on African American history in 1970.

In 1972, he became a Special Assistant to a PSU Vice-President. From 1974 to 1975, he was an Artist-in-Residence at PSU. He traveled to all 21 campuses to give art seminars. His large sculpture, University as Family, was installed on the library lawn at PSU Scranton. He used the face of a friend's daughter as a model for one of the figures.

Representing PSU

In 1975, Oliver was chosen to represent PSU on the Pennsylvania Bicentennial Commission. He was also featured in a 1976 book about 100 African American leaders. The book's cover even showed a picture of Oliver.

The LaGrone Cultural Arts Center at Penn State Harrisburg is named after him. It displays several of his sculptures, including The Dancer. A smaller version of University as Family is also there. His bust of Paul Robeson is in the student union at the main PSU campus.

While in Pennsylvania, Oliver lived in Harrisburg. The city's mayor declared February 3, 1983, and again in 1993, as "Oliver LaGrone Day." He also served on the city's Human Relations Commission.

Active Retirement and Legacy

Retiring from PSU, Oliver opened a sculpting studio in Hershey, Pennsylvania. He taught art to children and adults. Later, from 1980 to 1983, he continued to sculpt and teach as an artist-in-residence for a program in the Harrisburg School District.

In 1986, his sculpture of Martin Luther King Jr. was given to the state museum. He also published another book of poems, Dawnfire and Other Poems, in 1989. A columnist described him as an "awesome renaissance man" and a "towering intellect."

Oliver married Lillian Pauline Mitchell Graham in 1976. They moved to Albuquerque, then Harrisburg, and later to North Carolina. He divorced again in 1992 and moved back to Detroit.

A newspaper columnist described Oliver as "a charmer" and an "elegant man." He said Oliver had a "melodious, hypnotic voice." Oliver himself said he was "a creator of 3-D communications."

Oliver LaGrone teaching sculpting to children of the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg, 1972.

Oliver was active with the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg (UCH) from 1975 to 1986. His bust of Harriet Tubman was bought for the church by friends. He also gave the church his bust of George Washington Carver. The church received two other LaGrone sculptures: Ballet to Disco and Mask. Members remembered his positive attitude and strength.

While living in Detroit, Oliver hosted civil rights activist Rosa Parks at his 87th birthday party. He continued sculpting and writing poetry until he passed away at age 89 on October 15, 1995.

Two and a half years after his death, about 200 people gathered at PSU Harrisburg to celebrate his life. They renamed the Minority Student Center the LaGrone Cultural Arts Center. A PSU official said, "Oliver was very charismatic, very approachable. He could see art in everything. He was so warm."

Oliver LaGrone Scholarship

In 1974, Oliver LaGrone inspired the creation of a [scholarship program] in his name. The main founders were from the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg. Oliver donated money from the sale of a bronze sculpture, The Dancer, to help start the scholarship. Many other people and groups also donated.

In 1986, Oliver advised young people to "Read. Read. Read." He encouraged them to learn all they could about their interests and to be gracious.

The scholarship program was changed in 1991 to focus on one graduate from Harrisburg High School each year. It now offers the largest local scholarship available to a graduate of that public high school.

LaGrone Sculptures

Publicly Accessible Works

• Mercy, 1937 (marblestone), 1991 (bronze cast). Located at the University of New Mexico Hospitals, Albuquerque, and the Albuquerque Museum sculpture garden.
• Bust of George Washington Carver, 1950 (plaster, bronze patina). Located at the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg.
• The Dancer, 1958 (cast bronze). Located at the LaGrone Cultural Arts Center at Penn State Harrisburg, PSU Scranton library, and City Hall, City of Harrisburg. Inspired by dancer Pearl Primus.
• Bust of Reverend Charles A. Hill, Sr., 1961 (cast bronze). Located at the [Hartford Memorial Baptist Church, Detroit].
• Head of Langston Hughes, (cast bronze). Located at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York City Libraries.
• Bust of Harriet Tubman, before 1974 (cast bronze). Located at the LaGrone Cultural Arts Center at Penn State Harrisburg and the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg.
• The University as Family, 1975 (cast bronze). Located at Penn State University Scranton library lawn. A smaller version is at Penn State University Harrisburg, Rowland Sculpture Garden.
• Ballet to Disco, 1979 (cast bronze, two figures).
• Mask, 1980 (plaster, bronze patina). Located at the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg.
• Bust of Paul Robeson, about 1985 (cast bronze). Located at The Pennsylvania State University (University Park), Robeson Cultural Center.
• Bust of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., before 1986 (cast bronze). Located at The Pennsylvania State Museum.
• Bust of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, (plaster, bronze patina). Located at the LaGrone Cultural Arts Center at Penn State Harrisburg.

Privately Held Works

Many other LaGrone sculptures are owned by private collectors. These works were created from 1930 to at least 1994. They include busts and statues. Most of them focus on African American themes of strength and achievement. Some of the people represented include Frederick Douglass, Aretha Franklin, Rosa Parks, and Sojourner Truth.

Oliver said, "I have been faced with the need of saying something about the black presence in America." He wanted his art to help America understand the contributions of Black people. More details about privately held sculptures can be found through the [Unitarian Church of Harrisburg].

LaGrone Poetry

• Footfalls: Poetry From America's Becoming, 1949. Held at The Pennsylvania State University, Special Collections Library, and other academic libraries.
• "They Speak of Dawns: A Duo-Poem Written for the Centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation, 1863-1963", 1963. Held at The Pennsylvania State University, Special Collections Library, and other academic libraries.
• Dawnfire and Other Poems, 1989. Held at The Pennsylvania State University, Special Collections Library, and other academic libraries.

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