In recent years, the artwork of the self-taught has gained increasing recognition in the mainstream art world. The New Orleans Museum of Art, a leading institution in the field, organized this exhibition identifying and documenting the superb aesthetic achievement of selected artists from thirteen Southern states who, by definition, have not sought didactic art training, traditional diplomas, or association with other artists or with the established art world in general. This overview of painting and sculpture is the first large-scale effort to consider the work of self-taught Southern artists according to intrinsic artistic merit and without regard to race, religion, or gender.--Adapted from foreword, p. 6.