Vollis Simpson (NC, 1919-2013), Folk Art Whirligig with Poodle and Cardinal

2003, polychrome painted mixed metal whirligig with three fans, signed to underside of blade of one fan.

57 x 28 x 16 in.

Private Collection, Edenton, North Carolina

Vollis Simpson was a celebrated Wilson County outsider artist with permanent works in the North Carolina Museum of Art, the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, and the American Folk Art Museum in Manhattan. His first windmill, produced to power a washing machine while serving in the Pacific during WWII, was made from parts of a B-29 bomber. The city of Wilson recently constructed a Whirligig Park featuring Simpson's work.

Some paint flaking to one fan, stiffness to joint; another fan with some cracking to paint.