Elijah Pierce Obituary
COLUMBUS, Ohio, May 9— Elijah Pierce, who gained prominence as one of the nation's great primitive woodcarvers, died Monday.
He was 92 years old.
Mr. Pierce, the son of a slave, turned his love for wood and a personal religious conviction into works of art that received worldwide acclaim.
In 1981, he was one of 15 artists in the United States to earn the National Heritage Fellowship, acknowledging him as a master traditional artist. In 1973, he won first place at the International Exhibition of Primitive Art in Yugoslavia.
He earned his living as a barber in Columbus until a hip injury forced his retirement. But he did not quit carving.
