Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné
[ 09.1 Black Men ]
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09.1 Black Men
During the 1860s Johnson painted Black men, women, and children that bestow on them dignity, intelligence, and grace. Many in his family, including his sister Harriet May and her husband Reverend Joseph May were ardent abolitionists. To Johnson, Blacks were not subjects to be ridiculed or satirized. —PH
Hills no. 9.1.2
The Chimney Corner
Alternate title: Old Joe
1863
Oil on paper board
15 1/2 x 13 in. (39.4 x 33 cm)
Signed and dated lower left: E. Johnson / 1863
This catalogue raisonné strives to reproduce the available historical information, as it was written in the period, while acknowledging that readers today may find many of these terms objectionable or racist. Please see the Racist Language/Negative Stereotypes Statement »
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Description / Remarks
Hills, 2021: The painting has mixed messages as discussed in Hills, “Painting Race: Eastman Johnson’s Pictures of Slaves, Ex-Slaves, and Freedmen,” 1999.
The setting of this painting is similar to that of The New England Kitchen.
Markings
On frame: The Chimney Corner/Eastman Johnson
Provenance
Exhibitions
Palmer's Sculpture, Albany, New York, February 22, 1864, no. 88, as Old Joe, owner J. T. Johnston.
National Academy of Design and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The New York Centennial Loan Exhibition, June 23–November 10, 1876, no. 161, as The Chimney Corner, owner John Taylor Johnston, Esq.
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Eastman Johnson: Retrospective Exhibition, March 28–May 14, 1972. (Exhibition catalogue: Hills 1972a), no. 42, b/w illus., p. 36, as The Chimney Corner. Traveled to: The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, June 7–July 22, 1972; Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, August 15–September 30, 1972; Milwaukee Art Center, Milwaukee, October 20–December 3, 1972.
References
Tuckerman, Henry T. Book of the American Artists: American Artist Life. New York: G. P. Putnam & Son, 1867, pp. 470, 624, as The Chimney Corner, Collection of John Taylor Johnston, Esq, N. Y.
Avery, Samuel P. The Collection of Paintings, Drawings, and Statuary, the Property of John Taylor Johnston, Esq. New York, 1876. Sale catalogue, p. 12, no. 22, as The Chimney Corner.
Hills, Patricia. Eastman Johnson: Retrospective Exhibition. New York: Clarkson N. Potter, 1972. Exhibition catalogue (1972 Whitney Museum), p. 36, no. 42, illus., as The Chimney Corner.
J. T. Johnson letter to E. D. Palmer, Esq, February 15, c.1864, Albany Institute of History & Art, "Learning through Mr. Avery that you were in want of an Eastman Johnson, I have sent you for your exhibition a picture by him just finished for me, an old colored man reading his bible in the chimney corner. For want of a better name I propose to call it 'Old Joe.'".
Hills Examination / Opinion
Examination date(s): 2018-06-26
Related work
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Keywords
- Subject matter:
Record last updated August 26, 2021. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Hills, Patricia, and Abigael MacGibeny. "The Chimney Corner, 1863 (Hills no. 9.1.2)." Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné. www.eastmanjohnson.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=82 (accessed on April 19, 2024).