Bannister, 1826 – 1901 Edward Mitchell Bannister American born Canada 1828 1901 Tending the Ground 1886 Oil on canvas Collection of the Art Fund Inc at the Birmingham Museum of Art Purchase with additional funds given in honor of Norman B Davis Jr AFI112016īorn in New Brunswick, Canada, Edward Mitchell Bannister moved to New England in the 1840s, becoming an active and successful participant in the region’s artistic life, despite the adversity of racism. Given the turmoil in Duncanson’s native land at the time he painted this, it is difficult not to read A Dream of Italy as the artist’s longing for a place of peace and serenity. In Canada, as one contemporary reviewer noted, Duncanson’s “color did not prevent his association with other artists and his entrance into good society.” The BMA’s painting A Dream of Italy is among the most significant works Duncanson painted during his exile. In 1863, owing to the growing racial strife stirred by the Civil War, Duncanson moved to Montreal, where he remained until after the war. Duncanson continued to enjoy critical success, and in 1861, one critic hailed him as “the best landscape painter in the West.” When he returned home the following year, Duncanson began a series of romanticized landscapes based on his time in Italy. In 1853, Duncanson traveled to Italy with two other Cincinnati artists, William Louis Sonntag and John Tait. It was also home to an active community of abolitionists, many of whom would become Duncanson’s patrons.Īfter a slow start, Duncanson found success when he turned his attention to landscape painting. At that time, Cincinnati-known as the “Athens of the West”-offered a vibrant cultural environment, as well as one of the largest communities of free people of color in the country. Duncanson, 1881- 1872 A Dream of Italy Robert S Duncanson 1865 Oil on Canvas Collection of the Art Fund Inc at the Birmingham Museum of Art AFI102009Īround 1840, Robert Duncanson relocated to Cincinnati from Monroe, Michigan, to pursue a career as an artist. In the meantime, visit the BMA to check out work throughout our galleries by these important artists. Our collection includes work by artists like Kara Walker, Ebony Patterson, Hank Willis Thomas, Shinique Smith, Wilmer Wilson, and Kerry James Marshall, whose popular painting School of Beauty, School of Culture will return to the BMA with the reinstallation of the contemporary galleries in April. While the Museum takes the opportunity to celebrate Black History Month in February, we are dedicated to collecting work by African and African American artists year round. In honor of Black History Month, we are highlighting 10 important artists whose work is on view now at the Birmingham Museum of Art.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |