Elizabeth Nelson Adams (January 22, 1941 – March 2, 2020) was an American visual artist, poet, writer, arts commissioner, and film casting director, born in
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the ci ...
.
Biography

A recipient of a scholarship from The
National Merit Scholarship Program
The National Merit Scholarship Program is a United States academic scholarship competition for recognition and university scholarships administered by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), a privately funded, not-for-profit organizati ...
, Adams went to The
University of South Carolina where she earned her AB degree in 1961. She later earned her Masters in English (1987) and her PhD in creative writing (1989) from The
University of South Carolina.
She was married to Ambassador
Weston Adams (diplomat)
Weston Adams II (born September 16, 1938) is an American diplomat, politician, and lawyer in Columbia, South Carolina.
Early life and education
Adams was born in Columbia, South Carolina, the son of Robert Adams IV and Helen Hayes Calhoun. He g ...
, and they have four children.
From 1995 to 2000, Adams served on the South Carolina Arts Commission.
She served on the Board of Directors of The
South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts & Humanities
The South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts & Humanities (SCGSAH) is a prestigious boarding school for the arts located in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1999 by Virginia Uldrick, the high school program provides pre-p ...
.
Writer and artist
A prolific poet and writer, Adams is the author of ''Gathering the Rain'' (1990), and ''Five Malawian Writers: An Essay in Personal Exploration'' (1987).
A successful painter, Adams had shows throughout
South Carolina
)'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = "Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = G ...
, in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...
, Palm Beach,
Nantucket, and
Lilongwe, Malawi
Lilongwe (, , ) is the capital and most populated city of the African country of Malawi. It has a population of 989,318 as of the 2018 Census, up from a population of 674,448 in 2008. In 2020 that figure was 1,122,000. The city is located in th ...
,
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
. In 2007 and 2009, she had art shows in Los Angeles to raise money for
Tippi Hedren
Nathalie Kay "Tippi" Hedren (born January 19, 1930) is an American actress, animal rights activist, and former fashion model.
A successful fashion model who appeared on the front covers of ''Life'' and ''Glamour'' magazines, among others, Hedr ...
’s
Shambala Preserve
Shambala Preserve is an animal sanctuary established in 1972 and located in Acton, California, a desert community southwest of Palmdale, off of California State Route 14 and north of Los Angeles.
About
Shambala is maintained by the Roar Foun ...
.
Shambala is a nonprofit organization founded by Hedren in 1983, which cares for endangered exotic big cats such as African lions, Siberian tigers, Bengal tigers, leopards and other big cats.
Between 1984 and 1986, Adams spent her time painting and writing in
Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northe ...
, Africa. Her paintings captured the landscape and the people of the former British colony. During that period she wrote ''Five Malawian Writers: An Essay in Personal Exploration'' (1987). She studied the culture of Malawi, from
Lilongwe
Lilongwe (, , ) is the capital and most populated city of the African country of Malawi. It has a population of 989,318 as of the 2018 Census, up from a population of 674,448 in 2008. In 2020 that figure was 1,122,000. The city is located in t ...
, to the northern
Nyika Plateau
The Nyika Plateau lies in northern Malawi, with a small portion in north eastern Zambia. Most of it lies at elevations of between , the highest point being at Nganda Peak. It is roughly a diamond in shape, with a long north–south axis of about ...
, to
Lake Malawi
Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique, is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania.
It is the fifth largest fres ...
, and to the southern
Zomba Plateau. Her extensive travels through
Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are ...
,
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...
, and other African countries are reflected in her body of work.
Lithography
Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone ( lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German ...
became a passion of hers in the 1990s, which can be seen in her series of Italian lithographs. She traveled extensively through
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, from
Tuscany
it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman)
, population_note =
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, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Citizenship
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 = Italian
, demogra ...
to
Lake Como
Lake Como ( it, Lago di Como , ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh de Còmm , ''Cómm'' or ''Cùmm'' ), also known as Lario (; after the la, Larius Lacus), is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the thir ...
, and captured the architecture, landscapes, and people of the country in her paintings, lithographs, sculpture, and poetry.
Adams's art has also been shown at the Piccolo Spoleto Festival, part of The
Spoleto Festival USA
Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina, is one of America's major performing arts festivals. It was founded in 1977 by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Gian Carlo Menotti, who sought to establish a counterpart to the Festival dei Du ...
in
Charleston, South Carolina. Adams's poetry has been published in numerous poetry books and reviews across the United States, including ''From The Green Horseshoe'' (1987) and others.
Film work
Adams was instrumental in the development and production of the feature film ''
The Last Confederate: The Story of Robert Adams'' from
Solar Filmworks
Solar Filmworks is a film production company which produced '' The Last Confederate: The Story of Robert Adams'' (2007) which stars Julian Adams, Amy Redford, Mickey Rooney, and Tippi Hedren, and was produced by Weston Adams (ambassador) and Ju ...
and
ThinkFilm (2007). With her knowledge of the history and nuances of southern culture, Adams impacted the telling of the story in the script phase, the casting, and the production design of the film. She was the casting director for the movie, bringing in such talent as
Tippi Hedren
Nathalie Kay "Tippi" Hedren (born January 19, 1930) is an American actress, animal rights activist, and former fashion model.
A successful fashion model who appeared on the front covers of ''Life'' and ''Glamour'' magazines, among others, Hedr ...
, who played ''Grandmother Adams'' in the film and
Edwin McCain
Edwin Cole McCain (born January 20, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His songs " I'll Be" (1998) and " I Could Not Ask for More" (1999) were radio top-40 hits in the U.S., and five of his albums have reached the ''Billboar ...
, who played ''Belcher'' in the film. Adams also acted in the role of ''Madame Bonneau''.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Elizabeth Nelson
20th-century American painters
21st-century American painters
Artists from South Carolina
Writers from Columbia, South Carolina
1941 births
2020 deaths
American women painters
20th-century American women artists
21st-century American women artists