#henryossawatanner — Public Fediverse posts

"The Arch," Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1919.

The great Black American artist Tanner (1859-1937) painted this scene not long after a huge ceremony at Paris' Arc de Triomphe to commemorate those who died fighting in WWI.

Born in Pittsburgh to an educated family, he studied art there and in Philadelphia, being taught by luminaries like Thomas Eakins. However, he faced racism in the US, and in 1891 he took off for Europe, eventually settling in Paris.

The French accepted him with open arms. He worked with the Red Cross during WWI, and depicted Black soldiers in his works during the period. This was painted after the war was over, and many in France found it a moving work. He received the Legion of Honor in 1923.

From the Brooklyn Museum.

#Art #Impressionism #HenryOssawaTanner #BlackArtists #ArcDeTriomphe #ViveLaFrance #WWI

"Portrait of the Artist's Mother," Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1897.

Tanner (1859-1937) was the first Black American artist to win international fame and acclaim, & they were well-deserved.

The son of an AME bishop, Tanner was born & raised in Pittsburgh. He received artistic education at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, where he was trained by Thomas Eakins, & worked with Robert Henri, a founder of the Ashcan School of painting, as well as others, who all remained his lifelong friends.

Finding racism and prejudice at home in the US, Tanner moved to Europe where he found acceptance, & where he lived the rest of his life, except for a few visits home.

Sarah Elizabeth Tanner (1840-1914) was born in Winchester, VA, but details of her early life are unclear; she may have been born to free people, or born into slavery and escaped via the Underground Railroad. She did become a respected missionary and religious worker, and raised seven children who all became successes in one way or another.

The portrait seems a riff on Whistler's famous painting of his mother, but here Tanner presents a warmer tone, although to me she looks sad.

Happy Portrait Monday, and Happy Black History Month!

#Art #HenryOssawaTanner #PortraitMonday #BlackHistoryMonth #BlackArtists #WomenInArt #AmericanRealism

"Mother of Henry O. Tanner," Henry Ossawa Tanner, c. 1900.

Tanner (1859-1935) was a Black American painter who worked mostly in Europe, and was the first Black American artist to gain international fame. Born in Pittsburgh, the son of an AME minister, he studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and was mentored by Thomas Eakins.
In 1891 he went to Paris to study, and aside from a few visits to the US, lived the rest of his life there, finding social acceptance that he couldn't in his home country. He was appointed a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 1923.

Sarah Tanner (1840-1914) has a murky history; she may have been born to free Black people in Winchester, VA, or she may have been a born into slavery and smuggled to freedom as an infant via the Underground Railroad. Whatever the story, she married AME Bishop Benjamin Tanner in 1858 and bore multiple children, and became a missionary and church leader in her own right. One of her other children, Halle Tanner Dillon Johnson (1864-1901) became the first woman to be a licensed physician in Alabama.

From the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

#Art #BlackArtists #BlackHistory #HenryOssawaTanner #Portraits #WomenInArt #Impressionism