The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1920-06-21
HENRY O. TANNER

The lack of opportunity of the Negro race has forbidden any great contribution from it to the art treas ures of the world but one artist of pre-eminent merit it has produced and that is Henry o. Tanner who was born on this day in 1859. Tanners portrayal of Biblical characters is so masterful and impregnated with gen. uine feeling that he has attained lofty place among the worlds great painters.
 Henry O. Tanner was born in Pittsburg and was the son of Ben jamin T. Tanner, bishop of the Afro Amercan Methodist Episcopal church. At an early age he displayed a talent for painting. The Zoo in the city or Philadelphia offered the boy an ex- cellent field in which to develop his ability and he found his greatest de- light at that time in making sketches of the animals. Henry's father en- couraged his sons ambition to become a successful painter and by means of his influential position gained for the boy admission to the Pennsyl- vania Academy of Fine Arts. There Henry made good use of his oppor tunities and after a two year course determined to go to Paris in order to study under great masters. Lack of money, however, prevented for long while the fullfilment of his de- sire. He continued to paint neverthe- less though his work suffered for want of technique and finish and in 1891 gave "one man. exhibition of his paintings. Amateurish and half baked his work undoubtedly was, but it showed unmistakable signs of the latent genius which lay undeveloped in the man.
 The auction of all his canvases brought him a scant three hundred dollars With this inadeuate purse he sailed for Paris, the Mecca of the artist. There he commenced his study and the possibilities which his work suggested awakened the inter est of the brilliant Benjamin Con- stant. Tanner became the favorite pupil of the great artist and bene- 1 fited hugely by his teachings. An | other famous artist, Jean Paul Laur- l ems, also aided him in his work. For two years he stayed in Paris | but his funds proved unequal to the | task of maintaining him in the city and he was forced to go to Brittany where he could live r9Sre cheaply. l During his studies in Paris his land scape paintings evoked favorable | comment and he was urged to con l centrate his efforts in that field. After | many rejections the salon at Paris ac- cepted one of his landscapes. Dl- | rectly afterwards he sent another of 1 his canvases entitled Daniel in The Lions Den'' to the salon. All his life ! Tanner had been deeply religious, this state of mind doubtlessly being in l duced by his fathers teachings and 1 influence and it was this fact that | inspired him in the painting of the i picture. The canvas was hung in an i obscure place in the Salon and re-
 mained there until the master ot ! oriental subjects, Gerome, saw it and
 recognized it's merit. At Gerome's
 insistance it Has hung in a place oi
 honor and sed&red marked attention In 1896 Ta@ner scored his big 1 triumph withNhis remarkable "Re-
 surrection of Lazarus. This canvas
 created ] furore in the world of ar and brought Tanners work into i'm
 mediate prominence gold meda
 was awarded him and the offer wa:
 made to buy the canvas for the Lux
 embourg.
 The art critics of America were a
 first rather reluctant to recognize the
 talent and genius of the Negro ar ! tist. Perhaps the strong prejudice
 against the negro in the United State
 was responsible for the slowness O.
 the critics to give the artists worl
 the credit justly due it. Today how
 ever, Tanner has been awarded hi:
 laurels which he merits and despite
 his race and color he. ranks hor:
 concours a master of his art witt
 other great artists. And the worl
 which won him recognition and rt
 which he owes his foremost p1acl
 in the world of art is his Biblica
 portrayal; the clean splendid crea
 ton of an inspired genius.