The Westwood Children (c. 1807) by Portraitist, Joshua Johnson
Joshua Johnson (c. 1765-1830) is the earliest documented African American professional painter. Little is known about Johnson’s early life, but that he was born in Baltimore, Maryland, a slave, and later freed in 1796 at the age 19. Johnson remained in Baltimore where he painted portraits of prosperous, white American mercantilists and their family. His painting style was considered conservative—a straightforward painting technique using sharp value contrasts of light and dark colors and stilted poses. Johnston’s style was very similar to American painter, Charles Peale Polk (1767-1822). It is speculated Johnson may have been a slave of the Peale family; a family of collectors and painters.
Today there are 80 paintings signed by Joshua Johnson, or attributed to him, dating between 1803 and 1814. Johnson has been recognized as painting the most portraits of children during this period in Baltimore. Ironically, out of all of Johnson’s works, only two portraits featured African Americans who belonged to the elitist mulatto class.
Visit The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. to view Joshua Johnson’s works.
Published by Clarke Art Consulting © 2010
