Clarence Laudric Shivers
October 14, 1923 – February 17, 2007
Class: 44-J-SE
Graduation date: 12/28/1944
Rank at time of graduation: Flt. Officer
Service # T67973 St.
From: Louis MO
Clarence Laudric Shivers was born on October 14, 1923 in St. Louis, Missouri. Clarence volunteered into the military during World War II. The high score he received on the entrance exam qualified him to be accepted into the elite Tuskegee Program, where the first black military pilots were being trained. He loved flying and always said he felt “at home” the first time he sat in a cockpit.
After the war, Shivers—a lieutenant who finished flight training too late to see any combat—Clarence concentrated on completing his education. He is a graduate of Summer High School in St. Louis and an honors graduate of Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, where he received a BFA Degree. His senior project, a huge mural at the Carver Community Center in Peoria, is still in existence today. After college, Clarence taught art at Jackson State University until recalled to military service during the Korean War, when pilots were much needed. He remained in the Air Force until his retirement in 1969 at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Upon retirement, he and his wife Peggy relocated to Madrid, Spain where they remained for ten years. Though a career military man, Clarence always maintained an active art studio. In Spain he was able to paint full time for the first time. He became well known throughout Europe for his paintings of Spanish Guardias and colorful abstracts. One of his paintings from this time was featured prominently in the film “A Piece of the Action”, directed by Sydney Poitier. The Shivers returned to live in the United States in 1979, settling in Colorado Springs where Clarence established a studio and continued to pursue his artistic endeavors. He was commissioned by Miller Brewing Company to create their 1983 and 1986 historic calendars entitled “Civil Rights Leaders” and “Black Political Firsts” respectively. In 1985, Clarence was commissioned by the Hooks Jones Chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen to sculpt a life-sized statue as a memorial to the Tuskegee Airmen. It was unveiled May of 1988 and stands proudly on the grounds of the USAFA. In 1993, Clarence and his wife established the African American Historical and Cultural Collection at Pikes Peak Library District. They also established the Shivers Fund at the Library, which supports a concert series and encourages young people in the arts by awarding grants and providing educational opportunities.
Visit the CAF Red Tail Virtual Museum to see Bust Sculpture of Tuskegee Airman and the “The Tuskegee Airmen of World War II” by Clarence Shivers. The plaque on the resulting statue reads “They rose from adversity through competence, courage, commitment, and capacity to serve America on silver wings and to set a standard few will transcend.”
It is one of Shivers’ best-known works.
Watch My Life as a Tuskegee Airman: Clarence Shivers
Sources:
CPR.org
Obits.gazette.com
