Joshua johnson was one of the first professional african-american artists. The artist was a freeman, or freed slave, who may have earned his freedom through the sale of his art. The names "joshua johnston" or "johnston” appear in baltimore directories from 1796-1824, where he is identified as a "portrait painter. " little is known conclusively about johnson since according to census records he moved frequently throughout baltimore. Scholar j. Hall pleasants surmises that johnson was probably once a slave, or a house servant of a portrait painter. Johnson's style contrasts with that of his contemporary gilbert stuart (1755-1828. ) unlike stuart’s facile painterly style, artists like johnson worked in a “limner” tradition – a hard, linear, and two dimensional painting technique which may have appealed to their middle-class patrons more that stuart’s grand-manner style and showy brushwork. The backgrounds of his compositions are often somber, whereas stuart’s often depict prevailing high-style interiors. Johnson’s subjects' faces are shown in three-quarter view, their eyes directed upward and their mouths drawn together tightly with a slight smile. His subjects often hold objects, as in this case, and often sit in chairs studded with brass tacks on upholstered settees or sheraton style chairs. Object Type: painting. Genre: portrait. Date: circa 1810. Place of creation: United States of America. Dimensions: 26 1/8 x 22 1/16 in. (66.4 x 56.0 cm.). Medium: oil on canvas. Collection: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Unidentified Man by Joshua Johnson
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