Because of the industry and need
for cheap labor, Polish, Italian, and African-Americans
migrated to the town, as occurred in all coal-bearing
areas of Appalachia. There was a greater tolerance
of immigrants than prejudice in these kinds of communities. Contrary
to the historical stereotype of Appalachians as being
Anglo-Saxon or Celtic in ancestry, the population of
Fleming-Neon, though small, was what McKinney remembered
as a microcosm.
•••
Because his father was established
as a familiar, dependable fixture in the community,
and had a needed trade, the McKinney family did well
and were well integrated in their community. The
family lived in a hollow surrounded by steep woods,
in a “shotgun house,” similar in form to a modern trailer,
later built on to by McKinney’s father. The woods
around his house was where McKinney spent a great deal
of his time as a child in play and as an adolescent
hunting and hiking. The size and beauty of the
land struck a deep chord of spiritual belonging and
appreciation from early in his life. He knew
that there was something unique in him, an artistic
urge; he had begun to draw as a toddler. His
parents recognized his individuality and gave him room
to explore himself as he did the forests and caves
of the area, although they worried when he was away. The
amount of self-growth and reflection allowed by the
natural beauty of the area gave him a great appreciation
of the mysterious and inspired. There was a universality
of color and music that transcended what they had in
common; the scales and compositions, formal elements.
There was something deeply natural and freeing in musical
improvisations and collaborations within a bluegrass
frame, as in the flow of watercolor in a representational
subject. The spirituality of McKinney’s art was
allowed to seep out through ritual of artistic technique
and craft.
•••
McKinney’s parents, like many people, thought art was frivolous, but supported him after taking a correspondence course in art from the Washington School of Art and proved his artistic ability. By this time, (high school years), he was already selling his art in the region, and knew where he wanted to be. |
