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Joshua Johnson, Painter

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"This is an oil on canvas double portrait of a mother and child. The mother, a woman of about thirty, is seated on a Sheraton sofa; standing at her left side is a child of about two years of age. The mother has blue-gray eyes and light hair. She wears a high-waisted black dress with white muslin and lace guimpe, and with sleeves trimmed with white lace. In her right hand she holds a half opened book, and her left arm encircles the child. The child is turned slightly to the left toward her mother. She wears a high-waisted muslin dress trimmed about the neck with lace. Her right hand rests on her mother's shoulder and in her left hand she holds a bunch of strawberry leaves and berries. The sofa is covered with some dark material attached to the frame with brass-headed tacks. The background is gray." - Chrysler Museum of Art
"Of the 80 paintings attributed to Johnson, only two feature African-American sitters: oval framed portraits of gentlemen dressed in black, with starched white neck cloths (possibly clerical stocks). No information appears on the reverse of either canvas, but similarities with another likeness suggest that the identity of the figure illustrated here could well be Daniel Coker (an ordained minister in Baltimore who helped found the African Methodist Episcopal Church)." - American Museum & Gardens
"Bowdoin's Portrait of a Man, sometimes referred to as Portrait of a Cleric, is one of Johnson's few recorded images of African Americans. This portrait, whose identity has yet to be discovered, exemplifies Johnson's naturalistic approach. Perhaps derived from the example of the Peale family of painters, but more likely stemming from vernacular portrait traditions, Johnson's style eschewed the theatricality and painterly panache of a Gilbert Stuart or a Thomas Sully. Instead he emphasized the details of the sitter's likeness. At the same time, he downplayed the role of color, perhaps to enhance the sobriety and dignity of his subject. In contrast to the somber mood of the painting, however, Johnson gives his sitter a pleasing, easy expression that dispels the awkwardness of a formal portrait sitting. The resulting portrait suggests a man who is proper, self-confident, and pleasantly urbane." - Bowdoin College Museum of Art