Henry Ossawa Tanner (June 21, 1859–May 25, 1937) was an African American artist who studied with Thomas Eakins and was the first African American painter to gain international acclaim.^[1][2] is the 172nd day of the year (173rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1859 (MDCCCLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... is the 145th day of the year (146th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... An African American (also Afro-American, Black American, or simply black) is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ... Self portrait (1902), National Academy of Design, New York. ... African American art is a broad term describing the visual arts of the American black community. ...

Henry Ossawa Tanner
[[Image: Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City by Henry Ossawa Tanner is in the collection of the White House, and hangs in the Green Room. Acquired during the Clinton administration with funds from the White House Acquisition Trust, it is the first artwork in the White House by an African American. |220px| ]]
Birth name	Henry Ossawa Tanner
Born	June 21, 1859(1859-06-21) Pittsburgh, Pennslyvania
Died	May 25, 1937 (aged 77) Paris, France
Nationality	American
Field	painting, drawing

==Early life==hahaha Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City by Henry Tanner source File links The following pages link to this file: Henry Ossawa Tanner Categories: National Archives and Records Administration images ... Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City by Henry Tanner source File links The following pages link to this file: Henry Ossawa Tanner Categories: National Archives and Records Administration images ... For other uses, see White House (disambiguation). ... The Green Room, looking southeast. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III[1] on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. ... The White House Acquisition Trust is a private, non-profit, tax-exempt fund established to finance the purchase of fine art and decorative arts for the White House, the official home and principal workplace of the President of the United States. ... is the 172nd day of the year (173rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1859 (MDCCCLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... City nickname: The Steel City Location in the state of Pennsylvania Founded 1758 Mayor Tom Murphy (Dem) Area  - Total  - Water 151. ... Official language(s) None Capital Harrisburg Largest city Philadelphia Area  Ranked 33rd  - Total 46,055 sq mi (119,283 km²)  - Width 280 miles (455 km)  - Length 160 miles (255 km)  - % water 2. ... is the 145th day of the year (146th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the capital of France. ... For other uses , see Painting (disambiguation). ... For scale drawings or plans, see Plans (drawings). ...

Tanner was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Benjamin Tucker, a minister of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and Sarah Miller Tanner, a private school teacher. Tanner was the oldest of nine children. ^[3] In 1864, Tanner and his family moved to Philadelphia, where his artistic interests developed. At the age of thirteen, Tanner decided to become an artist when he saw a painter in Fairmount Park near his home. ^[1] Pittsburgh redirects here. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church, is a Christian denomination founded by Bishop Richard Allen in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1816. ...

Tanner was initially self taught. As a young man he read that America was in need of a great maritime painter. Initially he was drawn to this genre, hoping to fill this position and make a name for himself ^[4].He studied paintings of seascapes at local galleries and made copies of them from memory. Tanner observed the works of artists such as William Wilson Cowell, Prosper Louis Senat, James Hamilton, and Franklin D. Briscoe. A local artist and friend James N. Hess explained to Tanner that America had even less representation in the field of animal painting.^[4] The opportunity to fill this void in American art excited young Tanner. His subject matter of this time reflect this ambition. James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Abercorn (born 4 July 1934) is a Northern Irish peer and politician, and currently Lord Steward of the Household. ...

To further hone his artistic dexterity Tanner often visited the Philadelphia Zoo. He used the animals as subjects for his various sketches and clay models.^[5] He continued to study independently, from observation, rather than seek professional training. Tanner’s quiet personality, the racial bias of the academic world at the time, and the advice of his friend Henry Price not to pursue a formal education all factored in this decision. During the day Tanner worked for a flour business to earn money for living expenses and costly art supplies. He would often rise at dawn to paint before going to work, and eventually became ill from the workload and lack of sleep. Tanner's family, particularly his father, continued to encourage his artistic endeavors and assist him financially for the next fifteen years.^[6]

Education

In 1880 Tanner enrolled at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. His decision to attend the school came at an exciting time in the history of artistic institutional training. Art academies had long relied on tired notions of study devoted almost entirely to plaster cast studies and anatomy lectures. This changed drastically with the addition Thomas Eakins as “Professor of Drawing and Painting” to the Pennsylvania Academy. Eakins encouraged new methods such as study from live models, direct discussion of anatomy in male and female classes, and dissections of cadavers to further familiarity and understanding of the human body. Eakins’s progressive views and ability to excite and inspire his students would have a profound effect on Tanner. The young artist proved to be one of Eakins’s favorite students; two decades after Tanner left the Academy Eakins painted his portrait, making him one of a handful of students to be so honored.^[5] At the Academy Tanner befriended artists with whom he would keep in contact throughout the rest of his life, most notable of these being Robert Henri, one of the founders of the Ashcan School. During a relatively short time at the Academy, Tanner developed a thorough knowledge of anatomy and an ability to transfer his understanding of the weight and structure of the human figure to the canvas. ^[4] The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts was founded in 1805 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by painter and scientist Charles Willson Peale, sculptor William Rush, and other artists and business leaders. ... Self portrait (1902), National Academy of Design, New York. ... The Ash Can Painters were remembered on this USPS stamp. ...

Issues of Race

Tanner's life was not without struggle. Although he gained confidence as an artist and began to sell his work, racism was a prevalent condition. Tanner’s non-confrontational personality and preference for subtle expression in his work seem to belie his difficulties. His quiet attitude might suggest an unawareness or even indifference to the serious racial tension in America. This conflict however was a constant pressure on him. Racism was on the rise as a result of massive numbers of Blacks leaving the rural South and settling in Northern urban centers. Tanner felt the brunt of this of this tension in Philadelphia. This took its toll on the young artist. Tanner lived quietly yet conflicted. Painting became a theraputic source of release for him. Obvious talent did not change the fact that he had to struggle with his identity on a daily basis. Lack of acceptance was painful. In his autobiography “The Story of an Artist’s Life,” Tanner describes the burden of race: Manifestations Slavery Racial profiling Lynching Hate speech Hate crime Genocide (examples) Ethnocide Ethnic cleansing Pogrom Race war Religious persecution Blood libel Paternalism Police brutality Movements Policies Discriminatory Race / Religion / Sex segregation Apartheid Redlining Internment Ethnocracy Anti-discriminatory Emancipation Civil rights Desegregation Integration Equal opportunity Counter-discriminatory Affirmative action Racial quota...

“I was extremely timid and to be made to feel that I was not wanted, although in a place where I had every right to be, even months afterwards caused me sometimes weeks of pain. Every time any one of these disagreeable incidents came into my mind, my heart sank, and I was a new tortured by the thought of what I had endured, almost as much as the incident itself.”^[7]

In an attempt to gain artistic acceptance, Tanner left America for France in the winter of 1891. Except for occasional brief returns home, he would spend the rest of his life there.

Life Abroad

After an unsuccessful attempt at opening a photography studio in Atlanta and teaching drawing at Clark University ^[3] Tanner traveled to France in 1891, to the Academie Julian, and joined the American Art Students Club of Paris. Paris was a welcome escape for Tanner; within French art circles the issue of race mattered little. Tanner acclimated quickly to Parisian life. This article is about the state capital of Georgia. ... Statue at the center of campus of Sigmund Freud, commemorating his 1909 visit to the University Front Entrance to Clark Universitys Jonas Clark Hall, the main academic facility for undergraduate students For the university in Atlanta, see Clark Atlanta University. ... The Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France. ... This article is about the capital of France. ...

In Paris, Tanner was introduced to many new artworks that would affect the way in which he painted. At the Louvre, Tanner encountered and studied the works of Gustave Courbet, Jean-Baptiste Chardin and Louis Lenain.^[8] These artists had painted scenes of ordinary people in their environment and the effect in Tanner’s work is noticeable. One example is the striking similarity between Tanner’s “The Young Sabot Maker” (1895) and Courbet’s “The Stonebreakers” (1850). Both paintings explore the theme of apprenticeship and menial labor.^[8] This article is about the museum. ... Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet (10 June 1819 – 31 December 1877) was a French painter who led the Realist movement in 19th-century French painting. ... Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin (November 2, 1699 - December 6, 1779) is considered by some to be the greatest of the 18th-century French painters. ...

He studied under renowned artists such as Jean Joseph Benjamin Constant and Jean-Paul Laurens.^[7] With their guidance Tanner began to make a name for himself. His painting entitled “Daniel in the Lions Den”, was accepted into the 1896 Salon.^[4] Later that year he painted “The Resurrection of Lazarus”. The critical praise for this piece solidified Tanner’s position in the artistic elite and heralded the future direction of his paintings, to mostly biblical themes. This painting would eventually lead to Tanner's first trip to the Middle East. 1879 The Favorite of the Emir Jean Joseph Benjamin Constant Jean Joseph Benjamin Constant, also written Benjamin-Constant, (1845-1902) was a French historical and portrait painter. ... Jean-Paul Laurens (Fourquevaux, (1838–Paris, 1921), was a French academic painter. ... ...

Upon seeing "The Resurrection of Lazarus", art critic Rodman Wannamaker offered to cover an all expenses-paid trip for Tanner to the Middle East.^[4] Wannamaker felt that any serious painter of biblical scenes needed to see this environment firsthand and that a painter of Tanner's calibar was well worth the investment. Tanner quickly accepted the offer. Before the next Salon opened, Tanner set forth for Palestine. Explorations of various mosques and biblical sites as well as character studies of the local population allowed Tanner to further his artistic training. His paintings developed a powerful air of mystique and spirituality. Tanner was not the first artist to study the Middle East in person. Since the 1830s, a growing interest in Orientalism had been growing in Europe. Artists such as Eugene Delacroix and later Henri Matisse made such tours to capitalize on this curiosity.^[4] For the book by Edward Said, see Orientalism (book). ... Eugène Delacroix (portrait by Nadar) Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix (April 26, 1798 - August 13, 1863) was an important painter from the French romantic period. ... Self-Portrait in a Striped T-shirt (1906). ...

The Banjo Lesson

In 1893 on a short return visit to the United States, Tanner painted his most famous work, “The Banjo Lesson.” The painting shows an elderly black man teaching what is assumed to be his grandson how to play the banjo. This deceptively simple-looking work explores several important themes. Blacks had long been stereotyped as entertainers in American culture, and the image of a black man playing the banjo appears throughout American art of the late 19th century. Thomas Worth,^[9] Willy Miller, Walter M. Dunk, Eastman Johnson and Tanner’s own teacher Thomas Eakins had tackled the subject in their artwork.^[8] This images however are often reduced to a minstrel type portrayal. Tanner works against this familiar stereotype by producing a sensitive reinterpretation. Instead of a generalization the painting portrays a specific moment of human interaction. The two characters concentrate intently on the task before them. They seem to be oblivious to the rest of the world which magnifies the sense of real contact and cooperation. Skillfully painted portraits of the individuals make it obvious that these are real people and not types. In addition to being a meaningful exploration of human qualities, the piece is masterfully painted. Tanner undertakes the difficult endeavor of two separate and varying light sources. A natural white, blue glow from outside enters from the left while the warm light from a fireplace is apparent on the right. The figures are illuminated by two light sources meet; some have hypothesized this as a manifestation of Tanner’s situation in transition between two worlds, his American past and his newfound home in France.^[8]

Painting style

Tanner is often regarded as a realist painter, ^[10] focusing on accurate depictions of subjects. ^[11] While his early works, such as "The Banjo Lesson" were concerned with everyday life as an African American, Tanner's later paintings focused mainly on the religious subjects for which he is now best known. ^[3] It is likely that Tanner's father, a minister in the African Methodist Church, was a formative influence in this direction. ^[4] For other uses, see Realism (disambiguation). ...

Tanner's body of work is not limited to one specific approach to painting. His works vary from meticulous attention to detail in some paintings to loose, expressive brushstrokes in others. Often both methods are employed simultaneously. The combination of these two techniques makes for a masterful balance of skillful precision and powerful expression. Tanner was also interested in the effects that color could have in a painting.^[12] Many of his paintings accentuate a specific area of the color spectrum. Warmer compositions such as "The Resurrection of Lazarus"(1896) and "The Annunciation"(1898) exude the intensity and fire of religious moments. They describe the elation of transcendence between the divine and humanity. Other paintings emphasize cooler, blue hues. Works such as "The Good Shepard"(1903) and "Return of the Holy Women"(1904) evoke a feeling of somber religiosity and introspection. Tanner often experimented with the importance of light in a composition. The source and intensity of light and shadow in his paintings create a physical, almost tangible space and atmosphere while adding emotion and mood to the environment.

Later years

During World War I, Tanner worked for the Red Cross Public Information Department, at which time he also painted images from the front lines of the war. ^[13] “The Great War ” redirects here. ... The Anarchist Black Cross was originally called the Anarchist Red Cross. The band Redd Kross was originally called Red Cross. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

Several of Tanner's paintings were purchased by Atlanta art collector J. J. Haverty, who founded Haverty Furniture Co. and was instrumental in establishing the High Museum of Art. Tanner's "Etaples Fisher Folk" is among several paintings from the Haverty collection now in the High Museum's permanent collection. J.J. Haverty (1858-1939) was the founder of Haverty Furniture Co. ... High Museum, Atlanta. ...

Tanner died in Paris, France on May 25, 1937. ^[13] This article is about the capital of France. ... is the 145th day of the year (146th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Legacy

Though he is not well known to the greater public, Tanner's work was influential. The early paintings of William Edouard Scott,with whom Tanner studied in France, for example showcase the effect of Tanner’s technique. ^[8] In addition, some of Norman Rockwell’s illustrations deals with the same themes and compositions that Tanner pursued. Rockwell's proposed cover of the "Literary Digest" in 1922 for example shows an older black man playing the banjo for his grandson. The light sources mirror Tanner’s “Banjo Lesson” almost identically. A fireplace illuminates the right side of the picture while natural light enters from the left. Both use similar objects as well such as the clothing, chair, crumpled hat on the floor.^[8] Tanner's style and approach to painting can be seen many other artists. Even though he remains largely unknown and underrated to the public today, Tanner undeniably left his mark on the art world. Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was a 20th century American painter. ... The Literary Digest was an influential general-interest magazine in the early 20th century United States. ...

Selected works

• Seascape-Jetty (c.1876-1879)
• Pomp at the Zoo (1880) Private Collection
• Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City (1886) Estate of Sadie T.M. Alexander
• The Banjo Lesson (1893) Hampton University Museum, Virginia
• The Thankful Poor (1894) William H. and Camille O. Cosby
• The Young Sabot Maker (1895) Estate of Sadie T.M. Alexander
• Daniel in the Lions' Den (1895) location unknown
• The Resurrection of Lazarus (1896) Musee d'Orsay, Paris
• The Annunciation (1898) Philadelphia Museum of Art, W.P Wilstach Collection
• The Good Shepard (1903) Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum, Rutgers University
• Return of the Holy Women (1904) Cedar Rapids Art Gallery, Iowa
• Two Disciples at the Tomb (1905-1906) Art Institute of Chicago
• The Holy Family (1909-1910) Muskegon Museum of Art, Michigan, Hackley Picture Fund

Exhibitions

• 1972. The Art of Henry Ossawa Tanner. Glen Falls, New York: The Hyde Collection.
• 1972. 19th Century American Landscape. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art.
• 1976. Two Centuries of Black American Art. Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
• 1989. Black Art Ancestral Legacy: The African Impulse in African-American Art. Dallas Museum of Art.
• 1993. Revisiting the White City: American Art at the 1893 World's Fair

^[9]

See also

• Realism (arts)

For other uses, see Realism (disambiguation). ...

Notes

Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 217th day of the year (218th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 217th day of the year (218th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 217th day of the year (218th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 217th day of the year (218th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 221st day of the year (222nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• White House Biography
• Springfield Museum of Art Biography
• Ebony Society of Philatelic Events and Reflections Biography
• Muskegon Museum of Art
• Profile at PBS.org
• Henry Ossawa Tanner Papers Online at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art