US National Register of Historic Places Adds L.V. Hull’s Home Studio In Mississippi

The late artist L.V. Hull made history by becoming the first African American to have an art environment added to the US National Register of Historic Places.

The Art Newspaper reports that Hull’s home studio is now part of the first visual arts center in Kosciusko, Mississippi. This marks the first time an art environment created by an African American has been recognized and the first instance where a Black female visual artist’s home studio has achieved national significance, not just significance in its home state.

After buying the house in 1974, Hull transformed it into her visual art hub, using discarded hubcaps she painted with polka dots, shoes displayed on poles, and shrouds of real blooms from her garden. Colorful art pieces are displayed inside and outside the home that sat vacant following her death in 2008.

“The imprint of her imagination is still there,” Yaphet Smith, a neighbor of the Hull house, said. “There are faded spots on the wall where she hung her art, as well as the nails all over the home. If you’ve seen pictures, the home was swarming with her work. And it’s really a way to commune with her, the way that people would when they came to visit.”

Smith’s grandmother lived nearby, and he frequented the Hull house prior to her passing. In 2021, he purchased the home and ran it under his non-profit, the Keysmith Foundation. Now, the home’s addition to the National Register ensures the preservation of its history ahead of launching the L.V. Hull Legacy Center in 2025 as the county’s first visual arts facility.

“It’s important to have an accurate story of creativity in America, and including her home on the National Register helps achieve that goal,” Smith said. “Hopefully, it will be a catalyst for preserving the spaces and stories of other African American artists, and particularly women.”

He is also working on a documentary about Hull, which can now use funding typically garnered from a National Register listing. Pieces from the late visual artist will live on through the Legacy Center, and an exhibit is set to open next year at the Mississippi Museum of Art.