Drunkard’s Devil

Description

This figure was part of a sculptural group that dominated Hall’s yard show in Athens, Georgia, in the 1960s. The artist, a self-proclaimed minister, created this tableau as a cautionary tale. One figure (which no longer exists) sprawled unconscious on a bench; the second (also in the High’s collection) sat intoxicated, raising his bottle again. This third and central figure was the greatest of Hall’s large-scale works: a fearsome, long-tailed devil that loomed over the second drinker, clutching a rock with which to beat the drinker if he stopped his self-destructive activity. According to Hall, “Satan, he’s makin’ that old boy go on drinkin’. You do what he says, or he’s gonna [sic] whop you!”