Romare Bearden. Romare Bearden exhibit review, The obscurity of the 19th century negro artists, 1967. Romare Bearden papers, 1937-1982. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The papers of the expatriate African American painter Henry Ossawa Tanner measure 2.3 linear feet and date from the 1860s to 1978, with the bulk of the material dating from 1890 to 1937. Found in the papers are scattered biographical, family, and legal materials; twenty-seven folders of correspondence with family, friends, patrons, and galleries; writings and notes by Tanner and others; a small amount of printed material; numerous photographs of Tanner, his family, friends, his artwork, and the galleries at the Chicago Art Institute; and a few sketches and drawings.
Biographical material contains identification documents, awards, family and personal bibles, scattered records of his membership in the Societe Artistique de Picardie and the American Expeditionary Forces, address books, family history, a file concerning a lawsuit against the Bethel A.M.E. Church, and a few records documenting the sale of his artwork. Tanner's personal and professional correspondence is with his wife Jessie, his family, friends, patrons, art galleries, and others. Letters are from various family members, his closest friend Atherton Curtis and his wife Ingeborg, friend J.S. Carpenter who was president of the Des Moines Association of Fine Arts and arranged for sales of Tanner's work in the mid-west, Grand Central Art Galleries in New York, and J.J. Taverty who purchased Tanner's work for the High Museum in Atlanta. Topics of note covered in the correspondence include the sale and exhibition of his artwork and his work for the Red Cross.
Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1890-1937 (Box 1, 4, OV 5; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1890-1978 (Box 1, OV 5; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1897-circa 1950s (Box 1-2, OV 5; 9 folders)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1897-1975 (Box 2, OV 5; 9 folders)
Series 5: Photographs, 1860s-1943 (Box 3, OV 5; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 6: Artwork, 1891-1893 (Box 3; 2 folders)
Biographical Note:
African American painter Henry Ossawa Tanner (1859-1937) was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Benjamin Tucker Tanner, a college-educated teacher and minister, and Sarah Miller Tanner, who was formerly enslaved. Benjamin Tanner was very active in the African Methodist Episcopal (A. M. E.) Church, eventually becoming a bishop, and the family often moved while Henry was a small child. They settled in Philadelphia, and as a teenager, Tanner spent his free time painting, drawing, and visiting art galleries. In 1880 he enrolled in the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he studied under several master art instructors, including Thomas Eakins who greatly influenced his early work.
In 1899 Tanner married Jessie Macauley Olssen, a young woman from San Francisco living in Paris. Also around this time reproductions of his artwork were published in a few popular American magazines, and Tanner began to receive praise for his artwork in the United States. Tanner, however, objected to being labeled as "Negro artist". Despite their misgivings, the couple moved back to the United States for a short time. Their son, Jesee Ossawa Tanner was born in 1903. One year later Tanner and his wife returned to Paris and made it their lifelong permanent home, only occasionally visiting the United States for exhibitions of his work. They also maintained a leisure farm in Trepied, Normandy.
Tanner continued to exhibit his work in Paris, develop his painting technique and imagery, and travel, becoming friends with many artists throughout Europe. In 1913 he became president of the Societe Artistique de Picardie and during World War I he worked for the American Red Cross in France. In 1923 he was made a chevalier of the Legion of Honor in France for his work as an artist. Tanner became affiliated with Grand Central Art Galleries and other dealers in the United States and had great success there during the 1920s. When Jessie Tanner died in 1925 Henry was grief stricken and remained in poor health for the remainder of his life. He continued to paint occasionally until his death in 1937.
Related Material:
Also found at the Archives of American Art are the Marcia M. Mathews papers relating to Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1937-1969, available on microfilm reels 64 and 3268. Archives of American Art microfilm reel 4399 contains the Alexander family papers relating to Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1912-1985, the originals of which are housed in the University of Pennsylvania Archives. Microfilm reel 4397 is a copy of the the Henry O. Tanner letters to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1885-1909, loaned for microfilming by the Academy.
Provenance:
The Henry Ossawa Tanner papers were donated in several increments by his son, Jesse O. Tanner, between 1967 to 1978. Additional papers were donated by Jesse O. Tanner through Marcia M. Mathews, who was in possession of Tanner's papers to write Tanner's biography. Four medals were transferred to the Archives from the National Museum of African Art.
Restrictions:
The collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Zolnay, George Julian, 1862 or 1863-1949 Search this
Extent:
0.4 Linear feet ((68 items on 3 partial microfilm reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1905
Scope and Contents:
Biographical forms completed by artists and illustrators for the Art League Publishing Company's ARTISTS YEAR BOOK. Each contains details written by the artist concerning parentage, exhibitions and collections containing his work, books illustrated, memberships in clubs, etc.
Included are forms from: Hugo Ballin, Frederick E. Bartlett, James C. Beckwith, William V. Birney, Karl Bitter, Albert D. Blashfield, Carle Joan Blenner, Frederick A. Bridgman, Bolton Brown, Ray Brown, George Elmer Browne, George De Forest Brush, Henry Kirke Bush-Brown, Walter A. Clark, Kenyon Cox, Lockwood De Forest, Harry Fenn, James E. Fraser, Walter Granville-Smith, Jules Guerin, Birge Harrison, Thomas A. Harrison, Ernest Haskell, Albert Herter, George Hitchcock, Lucius Wolcott Hitchcock, Edward Kemeys, William S. Kendall, Alonzo Kimball, Charles MacCord, Thomas R. Manley, Richard F. Maynard, George H. McCord, Thomas Meteyard, Francis D. Millet, John H. Mills, Edward P. Moran, Henry Mosler,
Herman D. Murphy, Leonard Ochtman, Frederick B. Opper, Eric Pape, Ernest Peixotto, Edward Penfield, Louis M. Potter, Edward W. Redfield, Henry Reuterdahl, Louis J. Rhead, Henry Sandham, William Sartain, Claude A. Shepperson, Florence Scovel Shinn, George H. Smillie, James D. Smillie, Frederic D. Steele, Julian Story, Lorado Taft, Henry O. Tanner, Frank W. Taylor, Dwight W. Tryon, Charles Henry Turner, Charles Yardley Turner, Ross S. Turner, Simon H. Vedder, Carleton Wiggins, Irving R. Wiles, Henry Wolf, Charles H. Woodbury, Rufus F. Zogbaum, and George J. Zolnay.
Biographical / Historical:
Art publishing house; Chicago, Ill. Published, THE ARTISTS YEAR BOOK: A HANDY REFERENCE BOOK WHEREIN MAY BE FOUND INTERESTING DATA PERTAINING TO ARTISTS, AND THEIR STUDIO, HOME, AND SUMMER ADDRESSES, FOR 1905-1906. Arthur Hosking was the editor.
Provenance:
Donated 1958.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Wharton, Anne Hollingsworth, 1845-1928 Search this
Williams, Frederick Ballard, 1871-1956 Search this
Extent:
1 Item (partial microfilm reel)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1885-1936
Scope and Contents:
Letters received, mainly from artists, Sept. 27, 1885-June 3, 1936, and undated, about works of art, invitations, exhibitions, art, travels and other art related subjects.
The letters are from: F.R.S. Balfour, Belfer?, Salvatore F. Bilotti, Carle Joan Blenner, Adolphe Borie, Frederick Andrew Bosley, Lewis D. Brandeis, Hugh Henry Breckenridge, Benjamin Nathan Cardozo, Walter Clark, William Anderson Coffin, Timothy Cole, Morgan Colt, Thomas H. Grattan Esmonds, William Bailey Faxon, D. Newlin Fell, John S.H. Fogg, Paul Leicester Ford, Charles Allan Grafly, Simon Gratz (13 letters), Sadakichi Hartmann, Jean A.A.J. Jusserand, Burton Alva Konkle, Hermann Dudley Murphy, New York Etching Club, William Ordway Partidge, William McGregor Paxton, Samuel Pennypacker (22 letters), M. Elizabeth Price, Edward Willis Redfield, Fred T. Richards, Henry R. Rittenberg, Alexander Charles Robinson, S. M. Rosenbach,
Chauncey Foster Ryder, Leopold G. Seyffert, John Simon, William H. Staake, Abby Weld Stevens, Mayer Sulzberger (14 letters), Henry Ossawa Tanner, Bernhard Uhle, Devitt Welsh, Anne Hollingsworth Wharton, and Frederick Ballard Williams. Also included are a letter from Rosenthal to S.T. Lowrie, a letter from J.W. Dunsmore to H.B. Snell, regarding hanging Rosenthal's portrait of Snell at the Salmagundi Club, and a notice of a sale of etchings by Robert Morris, 1899.
Arrangement:
Arranged chronologically.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, portrait painter, lithographer, art collector; New Hope, Pa.
Provenance:
Microfilmed by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania for the Archives of American Art, 1955.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
This microfilm collection consists of papers compiled by Milton Morriss James on African American artists Laura Wheeler Waring and Henry Ossawa Tanner, as well as on artist Julius Bloch.
The compiled papers related to Laura Wheeler Waring include correspondence (1923-1946) regarding commissions, exhibitions, honorary positions, and activities related to State Teachers College at Cheyney, as well as a letter from J. O. Tanner offering to sell an H. O. Tanner painting to Waring for Cheyney; teaching materials, including course outlines, exams, and reports for music and art appreciation, handwriting, visual education, and other art classes; a sketchbook; and printed material (1948-1977).
Julius Bloch material (1950-1980) includes correspondence regarding James' effort to purchase a Bloch painting, as well as an article on Bloch.
James' correspondence (1948-1977) relates to efforts to get a Philadelphia public school named after Laura Wheeler Waring and to organize exhibitions of Waring's work. Research correspondence conserns publications on Warring and Henry O. Tanner. Also included is correspondence with Mary Beattie Brady of the Harmon Foundation regarding works of art for Cheyney and the Laura Wheeler Waring Public School.
Biographical / Historical:
Milton Morriss James (1926-) is a teacher and author in Yeadon, Pennsylvania. James taught in the Philadelphia Public School System and publishes books and articles on African American artists. He was acquainted with Laura Wheeler Waring in the 1940s.
Provenance:
Microfilmed in 1990 as part of AAA's Philadelphia Arts Documentation Project. James collected the Waring papers from Dr. Waring after Laura Wheeler Waring's death for his research.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
The Marcia M. Mathews papers relating to Henry Ossawa Tanner consist of 54 items and date from 1937 to 1969, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1963 to 1969. The collection primarily consists of correspondence preceding Mathew's 1969 book Henry O. Tanner, American Artist and related printed material.
REEL 64: 26 letters, January 21, 1966 through March 5, 1968, to Mathews from Jesse O. Tanner, son of Henry Ossawa Tanner, conveying information about his father and particular art works; as well as a letter from Edith D. [Mrs. William] Glackens, August 7, 1937, to Charles C. Tough, Jesse O. Tanner's uncle, advising with regard to Tough's plans of selling Henry O. Tanner's paintings. Also included is a biographical questionnaire completed by Henry O. Tanner for the Art League Publishing Company.
REEL 3268: 23 letters to Mathews regarding her book and exhibitions of Tanner's work; and printed material, 1968-1969. Correspondents include Jesse O. Tanner, Erwin S. Barrie, Romare H. Bearden, George Biddle, Mrs. Samuel M. Bryant, Benjamin Mays, James A. Porter, and Warren Robbins.
Biographical / Historical:
Marcia M. Mathews is a writer and art historian in Durham, North Carolina.
Henry Ossawa Tanner (1859-1937) was an African American painter born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania who spent much of his life in Paris, France. His work often depicts biblical scenes. Tanner trained at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts under Thomas Eakins. In 1891, Tanner traveled to Europe and settled in Paris, where he remained for the rest of his life.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds the Henry Ossawa Tanner papers, 1860s-1978; the Henry O. Tanner letters to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1885-1909; and the Alexander family papers relating to Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1912-1985. The Atlanta University Center, Robert W. Woodruff Library holds the Henry Ossawa Tanner collection, 1907-1937.
Provenance:
Donated 1969 and 1976 by Marcia Mathews.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
This microfilm collection consists of the Alexander family papers relating to African American painter Henry Ossawa Tanner. The collection includes correspondence between Tanner and Raymond Alexander (1924-1937) and court documents concerning Tanner's legal action against the Bethel A.M.E Church. Included in the Sadie Aleander materials are personal letters from Tanner; correspondence from museums discussing exhibition loans and the discovery of Tanner paintings; printed material, including catalogs and clippings; and materials related to the Tanner commemorative stamp.
Biographical / Historical:
Raymond Pace Alexander (1897-1974) and Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander (1898-1989) were prominent African American lawyers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Sadie Alexander was Henry Ossawa Tanner's niece. Raymond Alexander represented Tanner in his legal suit against the Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church in Philadelphia regarding nonpayment for a bust of Richard Allen.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds the Henry Ossawa Tanner papers, 1860s-1978; the Henry O. Tanner letters to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1885-1909; and the Marcia M. Mathews papers relating to Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1937-1969. The Atlanta University Center, Robert W. Woodruff Library holds the Henry Ossawa Tanner collection, 1907-1937.
Provenance:
Microfilmed in 1990 as part of AAA's Philadelphia Arts Documentation Project. Only those parts of the Alexander family papers relating to Henry Ossawa Tanner were filmed; the entire collection is available at the University of Pennsylvania Archives and Records Center (Alexander Family Papers, 1817-2005).
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Occupation:
Lawyers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Topic:
Expatriate painters -- France -- Paris Search this
Letters; notes; a lease; financial records; printed material; and photographs.
Letters to Browne from artists Martin Borgord, Walter L. Clark, George Wharton Edwards, Helen (Wolhaupter) Kelly, Josephine Mast, William Ritschel, W. H. Singer, Vera Stevens, Henry Ossawa Tanner, and Mary Wicker, 1909-1932; a postcard displaying a photograph of Browne, George H. McCord, David Preyer, 1900; an etching used as a greeting card by J. Berthier, 1928; a letter concerning the health of Charles Hawthorne from his wife, Marion, 1930; a lease for exhibition space, 1931; invoices and receipts, 1929-1931; an income tax return, 1924; bank statements, 1929; several clippings, 1930-1931, an exhibition announcement and two catalogs, 1906 and 1918; teaching brochures; a booklet "What Europe Thinks of American Art" by Henry Rankin Poore; 3 photographs of Browne, undated and 1909, and one of Charles Heinz in Provincetown; photographs of works of art, an installation at the Art Institute of Chicago, 1906, and an unidentified interior decorated by a mural; and 20 photographs of Egypt and rural France.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, art instructor; New York, N.Y. and Provincetown, Mass.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming by the Chrysler Museum, Norfolk, Virginia, 1990.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Occupation:
Art teachers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Art teachers -- Massachusetts -- Provincetown Search this
Painters -- Massachusetts -- Provincetown Search this