Jessamine Shumate

Another two works were done in watercolor painting of the Philpott Dam in Henry County. These were done during the construction phase of the dam, and both paintings show the temporary cement factory that was constructed to make the cement locally, and then taken down and removed after the dam was constructed. Her paintings are the only representations from this period, since most other photographic work concentrated on the construction of the dam itself, and not in the engineering aspects of the construction site. These paintings have recently been given to the Philpott Dam. "Relatives of the late artist Ada Jessamine Shumate, who contributed two of her paintings of the construction of Philpott Dam to the dam's visitor's center. Shumate was a native of Henry County who painted the construction during the 1950s. Sharing the paintings with the public is a fitting tribute to her work and a good way for people to get a sense of what went into creating the dam." Another article commented: "Relatives of the late artist Ada Jessamine Shumate, who contributed two of her paintings of the construction of Philpott Dam to the dam's visitor's center. Shumate was a native of Henry County who painted the construction during the 1950s. Sharing the paintings with the public is a fitting tribute to her work and a good way for people to get a sense of what went into creating the dam."

Jessamine Shumate worked within a number of different styles and media during her career. "Her work covers a broad range of media including silk screen-printing, pastel, transparent and opaque water color, oil, collage, batik and serigraph. Some of her techniques involve oil and the use of a blowtorch. She uses her serigraphs and silk screens as part of her collage work. Mrs. Shumate also makes photographic prints of her original work." She did traditional portraits; still life; traditional bucolic and rural scenes of Virginia and landscapes. She also completed a number of abstract art works, using cubism, orientalism and found object art. However, during her time, she lived in artistic isolation. In southwestern Virginia, there were few other professional artists, and fewer people to discuss and exchange artistic ideas with. Those artists in the southwestern Virginia area during the 1940s and 1950s, were frequently very conservative in their tastes. They often concentrated only on traditional southern art paintings, such as family portraits, landscapes, or simply decorating utensils. Few other people in the region had the scope and range of Jessamine Shumate's efforts, and she received much local criticism and disapproval for some of her modern art projects and accomplishments. She was also a founder of what is now called the Piedmont Arts Association in Martinsville, Virginia.

Another series of paintings were done when she was a student at the Woman's College in Greensboro, North Carolina, now the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Some of these paintings show a cubist style of the gym and other buildings, showing images of the past and present brought together, so older buildings appear to overlap newer construction. Other paintings are pastels showing scenes of student housing and life in Greensboro, North Carolina from the late 1940s.

She married Whitney Shumate on December 13, 1922. She said in her autobiography, "While I was going to school in Martinsville, I met a young man named Whitney Shumate. We started dating and went together for three years before we were married. The family teased me, because Whitney had a large car and when he came to Preston, Virginia to visit, always took me and a few members of my family for rides. When he bought a coupe, everyone said he was getting serious and wanted to leave my family at home when he took me for rides! It must have been true, because we were married on December 13, 1922."

Jessamine Shumate was born to a tradesman and general store owner in Horsepasture, Virginia, Nathan Mortimer White and Ada Bassett White, who was an elementary school truant officer. Her father was quite the country scientist and shade tree inventor, and she said of him in her autobiography, "Another memory is going with my father to the barn each night to feed the animals there. In 1910, when Halley's Comet was seen, we watched for it and he told me all about it as we walked to the barn. He was very interested in scientific happenings and nature, and I was fascinated by the sight! What a thrill to know I had lived long enough to see Halley's Comet again in 1986. This time, however, the sight was not as wonderful! Even the scientists were disappointed in the display of Halley's Comet's tail. The next time around, I suppose my great grandchildren will be here to see the comet."

Ada Jessamine Shumate (born on March 31, 1902 as Ada Jessamine White in Horsepasture, Virginia – died on December 16, 1990 in Greenville, North Carolina) was an American artist, historian and cartographer, winner of the "Award of Distinction" in 1955 from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.