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Collections: American Art: John Jacob Anderson and Sons, John and Edward

John Jacob Anderson and Sons, John and Edward

Joshua Johnson, a free black who made his living as a portraitist in the racially tolerant environment of Federal-era Baltimore, had a talent for the tender delineation of family ties. Here, the small boys each extend an arm to their father and rest a pale hand on his sturdy form. Their father's hand, open in his lap, suggests a gentle accessibility. Johnson modeled his compositions on portraits by the Peale family of painters, for whom he initially may have worked as a servant in Philadelphia.

Artist: Joshua Johnson, active circa 1795-1825
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dates: ca. 1812-1815
Dimensions: 30 1/8 x 39 11/16 in. (76.5 x 100.8 cm)
Collections: American Art
Museum Location: This item is on view in American Identities: A New Look, 5th floor
Accession Number: 1993.82
Credit Line: Dick S. Ramsay Fund and Mary Smith Dorward Fund
Image: Overall, 1993.82_transp549.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph

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