Tella Kitchen (February 14, 1902 – June 21, 1988)[1] was an Americanfolk artist known for her paintings of landscapes and town life in ruralIndiana andOhio. She was aself-taught artist, whose work was based on her memories of her life.[2] Her work achieved national recognition, and can be found in the collections of theAmerican Folk Art Museum.[1][2]
She was bornTella Denehue, on a small farm in the hills ofVinton County, Ohio, near the village ofLondonderry, in neighboringRoss County, Ohio.[3][4] Her father's family had immigrated to the United States fromCounty Cork, Ireland; her mother's family was fromPennsylvania.[3] During her childhood she moved with her family to Indiana, where they settled on a small farm nearIndependence.[4][3]
In 1920 she married Noland Kitchen,[1] and the couple moved to the village ofAdelphi, Ohio, where they raised four children.[1] Noland Kitchen served as mayor of Adelphi; the Kitchens also operated a gas station, sold used cars, and farmed.[4]
After her husband's death in 1963, Tella Kitchen succeeded him as mayor of Adelphi.[5] At some point during this period of her life, her son Denny gave her a paint set as a gift, and she began painting when she was around 67 years old,[6] drawing on her memories of her childhood, and her experiences of rural and town life, including contemporary events.[5]
Through the efforts of Denny Kitchen, the artist's son, her work came to the attention of the folk art historianRobert Bishop, then a curator at theHenry Ford Museum, inDearborn, Michigan, and later the director of the Museum of American Folk Art (since 2001 known as the American Folk Art Museum), inNew York City; Bishop included Kitchen in his bookFolk Painters of America (1979).[4]