James A. Porter facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
James A. Porter
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| Born | December 22, 1905 Baltimore, Maryland
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| Died | February 28, 1970 (aged 64) |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | The Art Institute of New York City, Sorbonne University New York University |
| Alma mater | Howard University |
| Known for | African-American art history |
| Spouse(s) | Dorothy Burnett |
James Amos Porter (born December 22, 1905 – died February 28, 1970) was an important African-American art historian, artist, and teacher. He is famous for helping to create the study of African-American art history. He was also a key figure in the African American Art movement.
Early Life and Education
James Porter was born in Baltimore, Maryland on December 22, 1905. His father was a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. His mother was a teacher. His brother John taught him how to paint.
Porter went to schools in Washington, D.C. from 1918 to 1923. He then attended Howard University. At Howard, he studied painting, drawing, and art history. His teacher was James V. Herring, who led the Art Department. Porter graduated from Howard University in 1926. He also studied at Teachers College, Columbia University.
After graduating, Porter started teaching painting and drawing at Howard University. He later became the head of the art department. He held this job until he passed away in 1970. Porter also studied at The Art Institute of New York City. Later, he went to the Art Students League of New York.
In 1935, Porter received a scholarship from the Institute of International Education. He also got a special grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. This allowed him to travel and study art in Europe. He studied Baroque art at the Sorbonne University in Paris. He returned to the United States and attended New York University. In 1937, he earned a master's degree in art history. Porter's master's paper was about African-American art and artists. This paper later became his important book, Modern Negro Art.
A Career in Art and Teaching
Porter taught at Howard University for over forty years. He worked with other artists like James Lesesne Wells and Lois Mailou Jones. He led the Art Department and was the Director of the Art Gallery from 1953 to 1970. David Driskell, one of Porter's students, remembered his dedication. He said Porter taught his "Negro Art" class with great passion, even if only one student was there.
In 1943, Porter published Modern Negro Art. This was the first full study of African-American art in the United States. Porter showed how African-American artists were a vital part of American art. He was the first to recognize and write about their important contributions. His book became the foundation for studying African-American art history. Porter became interested in forgotten artists after reading about Robert S. Duncanson. This led him to research Duncanson and other artists of African descent.
In 1945, Porter received another grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. He took a year off from teaching to study art and culture. He traveled to Cuba and Haiti from 1945 to 1946. In Haiti, Porter painted everyday people and landscapes. His approach was different from other Black artists who visited Haiti. He painted strong, important figures of the "market women" he saw.
Porter's paintings and writings encouraged Americans to look deeper than the surface of Haiti. In his 1946 essay "Picturesque Haiti," he warned against just seeing the country as "picturesque." His paintings showed the economic struggles of the Haitian people. This made his work stand out from other artists of his time. His research in Haiti, Cuba, and West Africa led him to create new courses at Howard. These included "Latin American Art" and "African Art and Architecture."
In 1955, he received a fellowship to study Flemish and Dutch Art in Belgium. With a grant from The Washington Star newspaper, Porter went to South Africa in 1963. He studied West African architecture there. During his time in South Africa, he completed twenty-five paintings with South African themes.
Porter's art was shown in many group exhibitions during his career. In 1940, his work was displayed at the American Negro Exposition in Chicago. In 1948, he had his own exhibition at the Barnett-Aden Gallery in Washington, D.C.
Personal Life
While studying, Porter met Dorothy Burnett. She was a librarian at the Harlem branch of the New York Public Library. Porter did research there. They got married on December 27, 1929. They had one daughter, Constance Porter.
Dorothy and James became partners in their work as well as in their personal lives. Dorothy helped Porter by finding important information for his research. Both of them worked at Howard University. Dorothy Porter was the director of the Moorland Foundation. This is now known as the Moorland–Spingarn Research Center. She helped organize and create information about African-American artists.
Honors and Legacy
- He won the Schomburg Portrait Prize from the Harmon Foundation. This was for his painting Woman Holding a Jug (1930).
- President Lyndon Johnson honored him as one of America's most outstanding men of the arts. This was on the 25th anniversary of the National Gallery of Art.
- In 1990, Howard University started an annual academic meeting in Porter's honor. It is called the James A. Porter Colloquium. This meeting brings together important scholars and artists in the field he helped create.
On February 25, 2010, Swann Galleries sold a large collection of Porter's research materials. This collection included photos, letters, exhibit catalogs, and books. Emory University bought these papers. They contain letters from almost every major African-American artist from the 1920s onward. These include Romare Bearden, Lois Mailou Jones, Meta Fuller, Elizabeth Catlett, and Deborah Willis.
