Henry Ossawa Tanner was the first documented African-American artist to reach international acclaim.[1] To this day, it is believed that he is the most distinguished black nineteenth century artist.[2] Tanner was born on the twenty first of June, 1859, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to his parents Bishop Benjamin Tucker and Sarah Miller Tanner. From a very young age, Tanner knew that he wanted to be a painter.[1]  Henry O. Tanner’s father was swift to take advantage of any possibility to discourage his son from becoming a painter.[2] For a young, African-American male, there was no precedent for success in an industry such as this.[1]  

     Despite the lack of support Tanner garnered from his parents, he continued to follow his passions.[1] Throughout his teen years, Tanner spent the majority of his time sketching, painting, and visiting local museums to study the great works of the Philadelphia art galleries.[1] He took his greatest inspiration in the form of everyday objects and people.[1] Just as he turned twenty-one, Henry Ossawa Tanner enrolled in the prestigious Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.[4] It was there that he was able to study under great influential artists, such as Thomas Eakins.[1] Tanner ultimately left the Academy prior to obtaining his degree and moved to Atlanta, Georgia, to establish a very modest photography gallery.[3] It was at this gallery that he created and sold his drawings, painting, and photographs.[3] To bring in enough money to sustain his artistic lifestyle, he picked up a job on the side teaching art classes at the local Clark College.[1] Despite his best efforts, Tanner’s business in Atlanta was barely providing enough to cover his living expenses.[2] In the summer of 1888, Tanner decided to sell his small studio and gallery and move to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.[1] While there, Tanner made many sketches and photographs of the region and its African-American residents, some of which were later used as subjects in his earliest and most famous paintings.[2]

     Following this most inspiring summer, Tanner was granted an exhibition in Cincinnati in the fall of 1890.[1] When the event ended and not a single one of his paintings were sold, his artistic sponsors, Bishop and Mrs. Hartzell, bought his entire collection that had been on public display.[1]  This kind act covered the travel fees to Europe, wherein he was immediately taken with the art scene in Paris and enrolled in the famed Académie Julian.[1] Among his teachers were the painters Jean Paul Laurens and Jean Joseph Benjamin-Constant, both of whom were great influences on the Realism and Impressionism scenes for the time.[1] It was not long after enrolling that he painted two of his most famous works depicting African-American subjects, The Banjo Lesson (1893) and The Thankful Poor (1894).[2] 

     There was a period of time in late 1893 when Tanner traveled home to Pittsburgh for a few months to visit family, however, it was while on this trip that he realized that the racial prejudices and tensions ran too deep for him to find success in America.[3] At once, he decided to make France his permanent home.[1]

     As time progressed and Tanner found his niche, he began to depict Biblical scenes.[3] In 1895, Tanner painted Daniel in the Lion’s Den.[1] This piece won an honorable mention award in the Paris Salon the same year, a huge honor and beginning to the career of Henry O. Tanner.[1] Two years later, he completed Resurrection of Lazarus (1897) and entered the piece into the Paris Salon.[1] Here, the piece was awarded a third class medal and was later purchased by the French government for permanent exhibition at the Luxembourg Gallery.[1] Eventually, though, the piece entered the collection of the Louvre, where it is still visible today.[2] 

     Throughout the final decades of Henry O. Tanner’s career, he was granted consistent critical acclaim.[4] In 1900, his 1895 painting, Daniel in the Lion’s Den, was awarded with a silver medal at the Universal Exposition in Paris.[2] Just the year following, it received another silver medal at the Pan American exhibition located in Buffalo, New York.[1] In 1908, Tanner had his first one-man exhibition at the American Art Galleries in New York City.[1] On display at this Gallery were all of his religious paintings.[2] Just two years later in 1910, Tanner was elected to become a member of the National Academy of Design.[1] In 1923, Henry Ossawa Tanner was made an honorary chevalier of the Order of the Legion of Honor, France’s highest honor.[3] In 1927, he became the first African-American to receive the honor of becoming a full academician of the National Academy of Design.[1] In his later years, Tanner became a symbol of inspiration and hope for young black artists and African-American leaders alike.[2] On May 25, 1937, Tanner died at his home in Paris.[1]

     As we examine Henry O. Tanner’s most famous works, it is important to have this minimal background information on him to be able to contextualize and interpret the depicted scenes deeper than at face value. To begin, let us analyze The Banjo Lesson (1893). At the time that this painting was created, Tanner was living in the Blue Ridge Mountains of South Carolina.[1]  Tanner was a natural-born observer and often made subtle political commentary on the subjects of his paintings.[4] The Blue Ridge Mountains were a haven for poor, black, freed slaves.[2] The Banjo Lesson depicts a music lesson between a grandfather figure and his grandson. The grandson is sitting on the grandfather’s lap, being taught how to play the banjo. The banjo appears to be the only thing of any real value in this scene, as we know that those who lived in this area had very little by way of possessions. The grandfather appears to be a formerly enslaved person, his banjo being the one thing of value he has taken with him from a previous life. By teaching his grandson how to play this instrument, he is also providing him with a coping mechanism. In this, The Banjo Lesson, Tanner's most famous piece, his desire to show us a moment captured in time is realized. In this scene he has created, we see not only a beautiful moment between the two subjects, but also Tanner’s vision of the future of America, of the resilience, assimilation, grace, and creative promise of a post-Civil War for African-Americans. 

     In The Thankful Poor (1894), we again see the same two subjects as depicted in The Banjo Lesson.[1] The two, most likely a grandfather and his grandson, are this time gathered for a meal. The table is set, complete with a tablecloth and wares, though there does not appear to be much food to share between the two of them. The two have raised their arms in prayer before they dig in to their meal, a symbol of the thankfulness for their freedom and the ability to support themselves. Again, Tanner was able to capture a beautiful moment shared between these two individuals. The scene is not set, but rather focuses on Realism and depicting society as is. Tanner’s signature style is to depict the small moments of beauty in our everyday lives. To Henry Tanner, this scene is much deeper than it appears at first glance. Henry’s mother Sarah was a formerly enslaved person.[1] Her mother helped her find her freedom through enlisting the help of the Underground Railroad.[1]  The Underground Railroad had a path to safety directly to where these two subjects are habiting, the Blue Ridge Mountains.[1] Through the stories of his mother’s childhood, Tanner realizes the importance of telling the black story, no matter how minute these stories may appear.[2] Every detail of the black experience is important, as their story has yet to truly be told. Tanner, with his growing reputation, becomes singularly responsible for bringing the black American experience to light.

     Following his initial entrance to the fine arts scene, Tanner begins to gain an interest in the depiction of Biblical stories.[3] His family held fast on to their faith, and taught Tanner to do the same.[3] As he aged, he realized just how important this faith was to his self-identity.[3] Following a spiritual trip to the Holy Land, Tanner created Daniel In The Lion’s Den (1895).[2] Henry Ossawa Tanner’s own distinct style becomes most visible in this piece. This style strays from the traditionally accepted hyperrealism of the time, picking up on hints of the Impressionist movement that began in Paris.[2] He sets the standard for a new art style to begin flooding the art world.[2] The recognizable style of the piece coupled with the subject matter garnered Tanner much international attention, making him the first documented African-American to become a successful full-time artist.[1] This piece rocketed Tanner to the top of the international high arts world.[2] Following this new-found fame, Tanner begins to create solely pieces that depict Biblical stories, yet another thing that sets him apart in the art world of the time.[2]  Realism and Impressionism flood the art market at the time, though Tanner made it fashionable to create Biblical art once again.[2]  Though he was looked down upon in the American art world due to the institutionalized racism that still deeply haunted the country, he made peace with himself and found his home in Paris.[2] 

     Tanner’s comprehensive body of work is most impressive. To garner as much international recognition and acclaim as he did was virtually unheard of for the time, especially when considering his race. Tanner broke many boundaries that had obstructed countless African-American artists before his time. By blazing his own trail, Tanner opened the door for many other black American artists to be seen and heard in the high art society. 

Bibliography 

[1] “Henry Ossawa Tanner.” Smithsonian American Art Museum. Accessed November 5, 2021. https://americanart.si.edu/artist/henry-ossawa-tanner-4742.

[2] “Henry Ossawa Tanner.” Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, April 27, 2021 Accessed November 5, 2021. https://www.biography.com/artist/henry-ossawa-tanner.

[3] “Henry Ossawa Tanner.” Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica, inc. Accessed November 5, 2021. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-Ossawa-Tanner.

[4] Stamberg, Susan. “Work of First African American Painter with International Reputation Explored.” NPR. NPR, September 7, 2021. Accessed November 5, 2021. https://www.npr.org/2021/09/07/1031027195/henry-tanner-black-artist.