Catalogue Entry
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, 2021: Johnson seems unique among American artists in his straight depiction of a Black American woman from the Islamic faith who is not meant to be an exotic figure, such as the figures done in some of the paintings of European artists such as Gerome. This handsome figure is clearly a woman and not a “girl,” as titled in the 1907 Estate Sale catalogue. The term “oriental” was a term used to designate people and things from what is now known as the “Middle East.”
Although John I. H. Baur owned and annotated a copy of the catalogue of Johnson's 1907 Estate Sale, he did not include this work in his own 1940 catalogue listing; he must have obtained it after publication.
"Signed at the lower right, E. J.
Height, 20 inches; width, 15 inches."
[Annotation: “32.50”]
- Portrait pose:
- Subject matter: