Mike South, American
The Power Arrangers, 1997
This charcoal drawing was made by Mike South, an artist and coal miner. The content of the drawing represents much of the mythos surrounding coal miners in Appalachia. It celebrates the hard work of miners to provide for their communities. The context behind the drawing illustrates the darker side of the coal industry. Mike South was diagnosed with black lung disease at age 35 after spending 11 years working at Armco Steel’s Semet-Solvay mine in West Virginia. South had always been an artist but most of his work was done with oil paints. As his condition worsened, the fumes from the oil paints began to irritate his lungs and he switched to charcoal drawings as seen in The Power Arrangers. South spent the rest of his life advocating for mine workers and creating art until he passed from black lung disease in 2001. Label by Becca Gurysh