Banjo Lesson

Artist Information

Working in France after 1891, Henry Ossawa Tanner achieved an international reputation largely through his religious paintings. Their deep spirituality reflects Tanner's upbringing as a minister's son as well as the influence of his visits to the Holy Land after 1897. Although Tanner remained active until 1936, he avoided avant-garde developments after 1900. Nor did he align his expressive style with the efforts of African-American artists during the Harlem Renaissance; believing that he could not fulfill his artistic potential while fighting discrimination in America, he moved to Paris in 1891. Nonetheless, Tanner's universal subject matter and the international dimensions of his career provided inspiration for future African-American artists.