In the fifth episode of FolkArtwork and Friends, self-taught artist Esteban Whiteside joins on a beautiful sunny morning to talk about how growing up, he was turned off from artwork because he could never draw realistically. After his dreams of playing professional basketball were dashed (I can relate), it was the free time he had while bartending and working as a security guard in one of his favorite museum collections that convinced him he could make art. After years of hustling and finding his calling, years later, he's still making some of the most poignant and powerful artwork in the contemporary art world. 

Plus, a look into the life and work of self-taught artist Steve Ashby, an artist who was brought to my attention thanks to Esteban, who didn't start carving wood and making art well into his 60's.

Follow Esteban on Instagram at @esteban.whiteside and shop his artwork at estebanwhiteside.com or on FolkArtwork at www.folkartwork.art/shop/esteban-whiteside

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Visit folkartwork.art to shop self-taught art by emerging contemporary artists

AND if you are in the Des Moines area, come to the Mainframe Studios "First Friday" event on January 2nd from 5pm-8pm to see me hanging out with Ashley Mary in her beautiful studio and selling artwork for my friends self-taught artist Reneesha Mccoy and Canadian folk artist Jackie Bradshaw.

In the fourth episode of FolkArtwork and Friends, a longtime friend and champion of self-taught, disabled, and overlooked artists from around the world joins me -- Jennifer Gilbert of Jennlifer Lauren Gallery in Manchester. Jennifer shares her background and her work as a curator and advocate for inclusive art, from studying graphic design to discovering outsider art through her work with artists with schizophrenia, as well as curating her recent exhibit "Look Everywhere" with the artists whose work made up the brilliant show. All that, and more, including her outsider art collection series, what galleries and museums can do to be more inclusive, and meeting the one and only Shinichi Sawada.

Plus, a look into the life and work of Japanese ceramicist Shinichi Sawada, who spent almost two decades baking bread in his mornings and creating out-of-this-world clay creatures in the afternoon -- all on the side of a mountain, firing his creations in a traditional wood fire oven, and becoming an internationally renowned artist. 

Follow Jennifer on Instagram at @j_lgallery and check out her collector series interviews and learn more about her work here: http://jenniferlaurengallery.com/

Follow @folkartwork on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for more

Subscribe to the "This Week in Outsider Art" Newsletter on Substack

Visit folkartwork.art to shop self-taught art by emerging contemporary artists

AND if you are in the Des Moines area, come to the Mainframe Studios "First Friday" event on December 5th from 5pm-8pm to see me hanging out with Ashley Mary in her beautiful studio and selling artwork for my friends self-taught artist Reneesha Mccoy and Canadian folk artist Jackie Bradshaw.

In the third episode of FolkArtwork and Friends, instead of telling you about one of my favorite artists, I am joined by one of my favorite contemporary self-taught artists Montrel Beverly. This summer, Montrel was generous enough to create a few pieces of art for the show I curated at SAGE Studio & Gallery, and he continues to push the boundaries of what seems possible with art made from pipe cleaners. We talk about the first pipe-cleaner sculpture he ever made, a pipe-cleaner prank he pulled in high school, and his plans for a pipe-cleaner world record.

Plus, you can see his work this January 2026 in Los Angeles at Megan Mulrooney Gallery.

Follow Montrel on Instagram at @mrclowney_ 

Follow @folkartwork on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for more

Subscribe to the "This Week in Outsider Art" Newsletter on Substack

Visit folkartwork.art to shop self-taught art by emerging contemporary artists.

In the third episode of FolkArtwork and Friends, I am thrilled to be joined by author and anti-authoritarian folk art historian Isa Segalovich. My former teacher of "Folk Art + Modernism" and I discuss the lightning rod moments that changed her mind from pre-med to trying to make the world a better place through artwork. We discuss her love for Wisconsin roadside art environments, the Mummers Parade, her journey to Romania and Bulgaria, as well as her love for all things ornament, which led her to write her first book, "Ornament Now," out in 2026.

Plus a glimpse into the humor and symbolism of the over 800 crosses that adorn the most beautiful cemetery in the world, the Merry Cemetery, located in Săpânța, Romania. 

Follow Isa on Instagram and TikTok at @interstellar_isabellar 

Follow @folkartwork on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for more

Subscribe to the "This Week in Outsider Art" Newsletter on Substack

Visit folkartwork.art to shop self-taught art by emerging contemporary artists.

In the second episode of FolkArtwork and Friends, I am delighted to sit down and talk to my friend Alex Huninghake, the Executive Director of Outsider Art Museum & Gallery in Louisville. I talk to Alex about becoming disillusioned with fine art in Austin, Texas, growing up in Kentucky, and having folk art around his whole life, how his mom helped convince him to start a gallery for outsider artists, and I thank him for giving me such a great hat.

Plus, a deep dive into the life and art of Minnie Adkins, a 91-year-old self-taught wood carver from Kentucky who has become internationally renowned for her hand-carved and painted wooden animals.

Be sure to check out Outsider Art Museum & Gallery's latest exhibit, "Melanated Messages", a group show dedicated to contemporary Black art spanning multiple generations in Louisville.

Follow Alex on Instagram at @outsiderartky

Follow @folkartwork on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for more

Subscribe to the "This Week in Outsider Art" Newsletter on Substack

Visit folkartwork.art to shop self-taught art by emerging contemporary artists.

In the first episode of FolkArtwork and Friends, I am thrilled to be talking to my friend Kylie Ryu, the Associate Director at Ricco/Maresca Gallery in New York City. I talk to Kylie about life before outsider art, how a random suggestion from her mom changed her art career, stumbling upon the world of outsider art, and how competitive cheerleading helped her land a job she knew she was destined for. 

Plus, a deep dive into the life and art of JB Murray, a self-taught abstract expressionist painter from Georgia, whose ghostly, colorful works of art helped ward off evil.

Be sure to check outRicco/Maresca Gallery's latest exhibit later this month, "Sarah Theresea Lee: What Big Eyes You Have", opening September 18th from 6pm-8pm.

Follow Kylie on Instagram at @kyliejryu

Follow @folkartwork on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for more

Subscribe to the "This Week in Outsider Art" Newsletter on Substack

Visit folkartwork.art to shop self-taught art by emerging contemporary artists.

FolkArtwork and Friends is a deep dive into some of my favorite folk, outsider, visionary, and self-taught artists, and a conversation with some of my friends in the field about how they got their start, which artists inspire them, their favorite piece of art in their collection, and which roadside attractions their children went to kicking and screaming but actually loved.

Once a month, listen, watch, like, subscribe, and enjoy a fun conversation between me and my friends.