4 O.L. Samuels pieces to be available at auction

Published 9:33 pm Thursday, November 4, 2010

Anyone who has ever wanted to own an O.L. Samuels work will have the opportunity to purchase up to four of them, if they place the winning bid.

Four pieces by the folk artist, including three wood carvings, will be available for auction at the Ashburn Hill Plantation Saturday, Dec. 4. Maurice Barfield of Barfield Realty and Auction said the works will be some of the many items available to buy from the Pidcock Estate. Other items include taxidermy animals, prints, glasses and railroad memorabilia.

Samuels said the eagle carving available is one of his personal favorites, and it took him about five months to carve it. The eagle, a symbol of God, and a horse carving are both made of Tupelo wood, and an African lady carving is made of cypress and has a pine cone for its hair. There is also the “Rock of Many Faces” made of lime rock and painted by Samuels, and each piece is also autographed by him.

With each piece he creates, Samuels said he carves it and paints it using the glitter dot technique. His first works were painted using whatever leftover paint he could find, and he continues the process to make his paint go farther. Each piece he creates is unique, and he dedicates every one of them to God, he said.

“I see things in the wood,” Samuels said, “and I try to get them out. The Spirit is in my work, and I dedicate each piece to God.”

Samuels, a folk artist, pastor and teacher who lives in Tallahassee, Fla., and formerly lived in Moultrie, said he has a museum of his work set up in his house. People visit from all over the country, and his work is on display all over the country, from the Colquitt County Arts Center and Gadsden Arts Center in Florida to the Arkansas Arts Center and Smithsonian American Art Museum. He said he believes art — like one of his carvings — can be just a therapeutic as a pet.

“A piece of art is better than any medicine you can take,” Samuels said. “It’s like having an animal.”

Barfield said he contacted Samuels about the pieces and wanted to speak with him about the history of each piece. That led to Samuels coming to Ashburn Hill Plantation Wednesday to meet with Barfield and discuss each piece. He discovered the pieces while cataloging all of the personal property for the auction.

Anyone who would like to preview the pieces or any other personal items in the auction can do so the week before the auction and the day of it, Barfield said. The Pidcock family does have additional pieces by Samuels, but only the four will be available to purchase at the auction.