Jimmy Lee Sudduth, (1910–2007) “Untitled (Evening Cityscape, New Orleans)”

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Jimmy (Lee) Sudduth (1910–2007)

“Untitled (Evening Cityscape, New Orleans)”
48" × 48" (52" × 52" framed) • Signed Upper Left**

… Read more Jimmy (Lee) Sudduth (1910–2007)

“Untitled (Evening Cityscape, New Orleans)”
48" × 48" (52" × 52" framed) • Signed Upper Left**

A large-scale, highly expressive cityscape by celebrated American Outsider artist Jimmy Lee Sudduth, this 48" × 48" mixed-media painting is executed on the artist’s characteristic hand-prepared panel and signed Jim Sudduth in the upper left corner. Pieces of this size, subject, and clarity are increasingly scarce—particularly examples that evoke one of Sudduth’s most iconic themes: his imaginative visions of New Orleans.

Rendered in bold strokes of house paint, “sweet mud,” and vivid enamel pigments, the composition presents a row of monumental skyscrapers rising dramatically against a deep black evening sky. The buildings—painted in Sudduth’s unmistakable vertical grids of color—tilt and shimmer with energy, capturing the sense of awe he associated with large cities. Though Sudduth’s cityscapes are never literal, this work strongly aligns with his known depictions of New Orleans at night, a city he visited, admired, and frequently reinterpreted in his paintings. The angular, brightly lit towers and the presence of a spire-like structure echo several buildings along New Orleans’ downtown corridor, particularly the postmodern silhouettes near Canal and Poydras.

Along the foreground stands a charming procession of simplified human figures, a classic Sudduth motif associated with the street parades and communal gatherings he connected to New Orleans culture. Their small, rounded forms create a compelling contrast to the towering architecture above—an interplay that speaks to Sudduth’s recurring themes of community, celebration, and the human scale within the modern world.

Sudduth, recognized as one of America’s most important Outsider artists, developed a highly personal visual language rooted in rural Alabama traditions, natural pigments, and improvisational mark-making. His works are held in major institutions, including the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the American Folk Art Museum, the High Museum of Art, and the Souls Grown Deep Foundation. This painting stands as a strong example of his late-career style: bold, intuitive, rhythmic, and unmistakably his own.

Medium: Mixed media (including “sweet mud,” house paint, and enamel) on artist-prepared panel
Image Size: 48" × 48"
Framed Size: 52" × 52"
Signature: Signed upper left “Jim Sudduth”
Provenance: Private Chicago Collection
Condition: Excellent overall; stable surface; ready to hang.

A visually commanding and highly desirable Sudduth cityscape—rare in scale, rich in color, and evocative of the artist’s beloved nighttime visions of New Orleans. Ideal for collectors of folk art, Southern outsider art, and American modern primitivism. See less