<I>Self-Portrait</I>
date: label: Date
content: ca. 1935
name: label: Created by
content: James Amos Porter, American, 1905 - 1970
notes: label: Caption
content: An artist as well as an art historian, James A. Porter is best known for Modern Negro Art, a groundbreaking survey published in 1943 on the works of African American artists. This book is considered the first comprehensive art history text to document the story of black American artists and how those artists have been affected by racial bias.
label: Caption
content: Porter once stated that he was inspired to write Modern Negro Art to dispute the "constantly reiterated statement that ‘The American Negro has no pictorial or plastic art.’" Porter’s decision to represent himself as a creator, an intellect, and a painter at his easel deconstructs this myth, revealing him to be an active participant in the history and legacy of American art.
label: Description
content: This oil painting depicts the figure of a seated man holding an artist's palette. He is visible from the waist up, sitting in profile to the viewer. The figure, wearing a white collared shirt, turns slightly to the left, toward the viewer. He holds an artist's palette in his left hand and two brushes in his right. A wooden chair can be partially seen in the foreground right corner. The edge of an easel and canvas can be seen at the left edge of the picture. A picture frame can be seen on the wall to the right.
label: Description
content: On the verso are three rectangular stickers adhering to the frame. One sticker is attached at the top. It has an image of James A. Porter and a block of text that reads "The Art of James A. Porter/ Dorothy Porter Wesley Research Center, Inc./ 2400 East Las Olas Blvd. ste 123/ Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301/ (954) 463-7880/ (954) 463-7881 Fax/ dpw_archives@hotmail.com/ #63 Self Portrait."
label: Description
content: The bottom left sticker (clear plastic) "Self-Portrait/ Oil/ ca. 1935/ collection of Dorothy Porter Wesley."
label: Description
content: The bottom right sticker "James A. Porter/ (1905-1970)/ Dorothy Porter Wesley Research Center Archives/ pmb - 123 2400 E. Las Olas Blvd./ Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301-1529 USA/ Phone (954) 463-7880 Fax(954)463-7881/ www.artnoir.com/index.porter.html/ email:artnoir@artnoir.com."
place: label: Place made
content: Paris, Ile-de-France, France, Europe
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Art
label: Topic
content: Education
label: Topic
content: Identity
label: Topic
content: Men
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Visual Arts
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2014.42.3
objectType: label: Type
content: self-portraits
label: Type
content: oil paintings
label: Type
content: portraits
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: © James Amos Porter
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: oil paint on linen (material)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (unframed ): 14 × 12 × 3/4 in. (35.6 × 30.5 × 1.9 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (framed ): 17 3/4 × 15 13/16 × 1 1/8 in. (45.1 × 40.1 × 2.9 cm)