Edwin Jeffrey Jr.

b. 1949

Edwin Jeffrey was raised by his paternal grandparents and father. They instilled a strong sense of faith and community in him at a young age.  His father was a carpenter but Edwin decided on the path of firefighting.  Before retiring, he raised to the rank of lieutenant.  In 1975, Jeffrey was intrigued by a publication on hand carved gun stocks.  He decided to carve himself and created his first piece, a Case knife carving. The carving stuck for Jeffrey and so when he was not fighting fires, he was at the station fighting the wood and honing his skill.  Those self-taught skills put him in the realm of Memphis’s other self-taught artists like Joe Light, Hawkins Bolden, and Henry Speller.  Edwin works with both found wood such as tree stumps, as well as wood from lumber yards.  He prefers exotic woods especially those from Africa like mahogany. Jeffrey works in his backyard since his retirement and produces work regularly.  Much of his work has religious motifs such as wooden Bibles and stories from both testaments.  However, Edwin is at his best when he carves subjects of social injustice, Black pride, and other racial themes.  He is not one to shy away from controversy as with his Klan carvings, lynchings, a vision of Heaven with a colored only entrance.  Edwin said, “Maybe somebody get mad enough to remember my name.” One of my favorite carvings, pictured below, is Edwin’s interpretation of James Earl Ray being judged as innocent by Dr. King acting as the judge.  Jeffrey, who worked at the fire station where King was assassinated in 1964, believes that Ray did not kill King.  That got Jeffrey a transfer to another station. Some of Jeffrey’s work is on par with some of the great African American carvers like Leroy Almon, Herbert Singleton, and Elijah Pierce.  Jeffrey’s work is in several museums including the Brooks Museum in Memphis. Edwin is very accessible and welcomes visitors and buyers. ⁹