The Queen of Folk Art and the Deep Sea Diver

Pictured above are Max and Mary Nohl in 1919, long before he became a legendary salvage diver, undersea adventurer and the inventor of SCUBA. And before she became a noted folk artist who left a major artistic and financial legacy for the citizens of Milwaukee. In her later years, she was ignorantly labeled by some as the "The Witch of Fox Point." Her wall-surrounded home in Fox point was festooned inside and out with her prolific output of paintings, furniture, re-worked found objects, sculptures. Max lived an adventure filled life before he died in a two car head on collision just outside of Hope, Arkansas that also claimed the life of his wife and four occupants of the other car including it’s driver, soul singer Jessie Belvin. Belvin had been recieving death threats from the KKK at the time and some believe that his car was seriously tampered with, causing him to lose control and crash head on into the Nohls.
By all acounts, Max and Mary were close. She even drew a comic strip -"Diver Danny"- based on her brothers' life. These drawings were first unveiled at the John Michael Kohler Art Center in Sheboygan, where all of Mary Nohls’ work (over 3500 pieces in various media) and legacy reside. Her home in Fox Point is on the National Register of Historic Places and is the property of the Art Center.