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Mrs Andrew Bedford Bankson and Son, Gunning Bedford Bankson Mrs Andrew Bedford Bankson and Son, Gunning Bedford Bankson
Southgate, M. Therese
2003-10-22 00:00:00
He flourished in Baltimore from the latter part of the 18th century through at least the first quarter of the 19th. Like most of the painters of the time, he had some local training, but learned largely through trial and error. He specialized in portraits, in particular, family portraits. After his death, his name was largely forgotten as the unsigned and undated portraits passed from generation to generation of the sitters' descendants. He was often referred to as "the brass tacks painter," not so much because of the straightforward, no-nonsense style of the portraits (though they were certainly that), but for the meticulous rows of upholstery tacks on the settees and chairs on which his sitters posed. The spherical shapes of the tacks, each defined by its own light reflection, were then picked up by other objects in the painting, reinforcing one, enhancing another, but always suggesting a unity between sitters and possessions; more importantly, the brass tacks often led the viewer's eye down unexpected paths to new revelations. Thanks to the interest and researches of Baltimore physician J. Hall Pleasants (MD, Johns Hopkins, 1899) during the 1940s, we now know that the name of this artist is Joshua Johnson [Johnston, sometimes William Johnson] (c 1770-after 1825). Joshua Johnson is the United States' first African American professional fine arts painter. The details of the early years of Johnson's life are sketchy. He was born probably in the West Indies. At one time he may have been a slave, perhaps in the household of the Charles Willson Peale family; others note that he had been free at least since the age of 19. He came to America sometime before 1790, and at least by 1796, when he was listed in the Baltimore city directory as a portrait painter, he was free; slaves could not be listed in the city directory. In the 1816-1817 Baltimore directory he is listed as a "Free Householder of Colour." He advertised his talents at least once in the Baltimore Intelligencer as "a self-taught genius." Johnson's clients were mainly white middle-class families of Baltimore. Many were Abolitionists. Like the Dutch in the Netherlands of nearly two centuries earlier, these newly affluent citizens of a newly independent country sensed their place in history and wished to document their likenesses for their posterity. Only two African American sitters are known; both were clergymen. Of some 80 works attributed to Johnson, only one can be identified by signature. Nor did he date his works. Here, however, the scholar's task is made easier from the fact that most of his works include children, whose ages, together with family history, can be estimated, thus circumstantially, at least, suggesting the date of the painting. Because of similarities between the work of some members of the Charles Willson Peale painting dynasty, notably that of nephew Charles Peale Polk, it is often suggested that Polk was Johnson's teacher. Typical of Joshua Johnson's work at the turn of the 19th century is Mrs Andrew Bedford Bankson and Son, Gunning Bedford Bankson (cover ). The work was completed sometime between 1803 and 1805 (a judgment undoubtedly made from the birth date and apparent portrait age of the young Gunning Bedford Bankson). The subjects were members of a prominent family of Gunnings and Bedfords whose surnames, beginning in the Colonial era, are preserved through the generations. Less is known about the Bankson family, although an Andrew Bedford Bankston [sic] was born on January 28, 1773, probably in Pennsylvania. He is listed in the Philadelphia city directory for 1796 as Andrew Bedford Bankson, MD, with offices on South Front Street. He died in October 1800 and was buried in Philadelphia. If Johnson's portrait is of the wife and child of Dr Andrew Bedford Bankson, as would seem at least circumstantially to be the case, then the subjects were already widow and orphan at the time of the portrait. Like the work of some of the Peale family, in particular that of Charles Peale Polk, the work is linear, severe, and shallow. A drape at the right, with its ubiquitous fringe and tassel (both Polk and Johnson used them frequently), attempts something of a third dimension. Though turned slightly to the three-quarters pose, the figures are mainly frontal. Their expressions are grim, in Colonial America a feature often thought to be associated with a virtuous life. The colors are somber, befitting the times, although it might also be asked if Mrs Bankson's dress denotes mourning. The fruit held by both the woman and child suggests a life beyond the present as well as fertility and future posterity. The "brass tacks" on the sofa create an interesting curvilinear design, reflecting the contour of the drape and softening the mood somewhat. The studs disappear along the top of the sofa to the left and then suddenly reappear at the lower left; the viewer must rethink the concept of space. A glimpse into Mrs Bankson's "true" character and desires is given perhaps by the delicate lace ruffle around the neckline, the carefully dressed hair, the jewels encircling the coiffure (each an echo of a decorative sofa stud), and the earrings. The final note of elegance is the child's dress, obviously meant for a special occasion. Where the furniture, the drape, and the background remain flat and somber, the figures, as Johnson creates them, are warm, loving, and full of life. Johnson died sometime after 1825. The exact date is not known. When Dr Pleasants died in 1957 at age 84, his studies on Johnson were fortunately not abandoned. As Johnson becomes better known, more portraits are becoming accessible to the public in museums. Much work has already been done by scholars; much remains for future researchers. Joshua Johnson(c 1770–after 1825),Mrs Andrew Bedford Bankson and Son, Gunning Bedford Bankson, c 1803-1805, American. Oil on canvas. 81.3 × 96.5 cm. Courtesy of The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Ill (http://www.artic.edu); photograph © 2003, The Art Institute of Chicago.
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JAMA
American Medical Association
http://www.deepdyve.com/lp/american-medical-association/mrs-andrew-bedford-bankson-and-son-gunning-bedford-bankson-z3EbgmJcon
