Portrayals of African Americans after the Civil War

After the Civil War and the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, African Americans were technically free from the bondage of slavery in the United States. Regardless, they faced a long and arduous path to freedom, and would endure nearly another century of oppression before becoming truly equal to whites. Though African Americans were no longer able to be kept legally as slaves after the Civil War, white Americans still considered them inferior. This is readily apparent when you consider the way African Americans were portrayed in the majority of art produced by artists after the Civil War. However, two artists stand in contrast to that generalization. Thomas Eakins (1844-1916) and Winslow Homer (1836-1910) both produced artworks with African Americans as the subject, and they portrayed them in a notably more dignified and sensitive way than their contemporaries. Both men, born in the north to families of modest, yet comfortable means, lived to see the rise, climax, and fall of the Civil War in the United States. They both saw the struggles that slavery, war, and eventual freedom brought for African Americans. In their art, they both pay special detail to things like clothing, facial expression, and posture. These details allow them to subtly but effectively convey the sense of isolation that blacks typically felt from society, as well as the heavy sorrow they felt. These were a stark contrast to the portrayals of blacks by artists such as Joseph Decker (1853-1924) or Thomas Hovenden (1840-1895). The piece by Decker that is featured in this exhibition shows the clear relational tension between whites and blacks, while Hovenden’s pieces create a false sense of contentment felt by blacks in the United States. 

Thomas Eakins. Portrait of a Black Woman (Negress). 1866-1869. Oil on Canvas. Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco. 

Early in his career, Eakins aspired to paint portraits. During the time this work was painted, he was still training in Paris trying to attain that goal. The composition of Portrait of a Black Woman is stable. The figure, who is a young black woman in the nude, occupies nearly the entire canvas. The background of the painting is a caramel color that is just lighter than her skin. She looks to the right of the canvas with downcast eyes. She appears to be saddened by something, or perhaps deep in thought. This portrayal of the sad emotions of a black woman show the sensitivity Eakins clearly felt towards blacks after the Civil War. He also paints the woman as attractive in appearance, which is unusual of any of Eakins’ contemporaries. Her attractiveness indicates that Eakins must view African Americans in general with more humanity than most of his contemporaries who did not paint attractive black women. 

Thomas Hovenden. I Know’d It Was Ripe. 1885. Oil on Canvas. Brooklyn Museum, 32.825

Thomas Hovenden was an abolitionist and a man who greatly sympathized with African Americans. However, many of his works portray blacks who are living in impoverished conditions, and are happy and satisfied. This painting, featuring a black man who has just cut into a large, ripe watermelon, does just that. The composition is stable in much the same way as Portrait of a Black Woman. The man is centered, and takes up the majority of the canvas. The background is dark and barely contrasts with the man’s skin tone. He appears relaxed, and is smiling directly at the viewer, while holding a half of his melon. He is clearly living in very poor conditions, based on the background. His white shirt is yellowing from age in several places, and all the furniture in the room appears to be made of roughhewn wood. Regardless of his poor surroundings, the man is the picture of happiness. For viewers during the late 1800’s, this would have planted the idea in their minds that African Americans were content to live a simple existence, and did not need true equality or opportunities for advancement as whites did.

Thomas Hovenden. Contentment. 1881. Oil on Canvas. The Columbus Museum, G.1993.23

This painting, much like I Know’d It Was Ripe, also shows blacks in poor surroundings, perfectly happy and content. In this painting, a heavyset man sits comfortably in a rocking chair as a woman prepares a meal. It captures a moment in which they are looking at each other and smiling in happiness. The heavyset frame of the man clearly suggests that he has more than enough food, and he is holding a pipe, which suggests there is either spare money for purchasing such an item, or spare leisure time in which to make it. The woman is likewise heavyset, and she is wearing a brightly colored headscarf. However, the house of the couple is small and simple. The woman’s dress appears to be fraying at the elbow, and the man’s vest is missing a button. Despite these details, the painting feels as if a 19^th century audience would view it almost as an advertisement for the simple contentment that poverty can bring for African Americans.

Winslow Homer. Dressing for the Carnival. 1877. Oil on Canvas. Metropolitan Museum of Art,  22.220

This painting by Homer shows a man in a clown costume, with two women on either side making some final adjustments to the outfit. Some children stand in a group in the background to the right of the man, and a single child stands in the background towards the left. Some of the children hold American flags. It is likely that this was a real scene that Homer witnessed in Virginia on the 4^th of July. Since this depicts a man putting on a costume, presumably for a celebration of some sort, the viewer would expect to see expressions of excitement on the subject’s faces, particularly the children. However, quite the opposite is true. All of the people in the scene seem somber and subdued. The viewer can then infer that this celebration is not truly for them, but perhaps they are just being made to take part in it for the enjoyment of an audience. The clothes worn by the subjects also points to their situation. The children are all wearing clothes that contain many patches, and thought the same is not true for the adult’s clothes, they all look faded and worn. The nature of the clothing worn by the people shows Homer’s sensitivity to the impoverished situation of the African Americans, and the attention to the subtlety of their sober facial expressions points to Homer’s sympathy towards the African Americans. 

Joseph Decker. Our Gang. 1886. Oil on Canvas. Washington D.C., Collection of H. John Heinz III.

This painting features a group of white boys who are surrounding a black boy. All the subjects are clearly young children. The black boy, standing roughly center in the painting, is the only one who is fully facing the viewer with his body, but his eyes are looking nervously to the right of the painting where most of the white boys are standing. He also stands with a noticeable stiffness. His hands are clenched at his sides, and his shoulders are rigid. There is a nervous energy that seems to run through his body, pointing to a “fight or flight” reaction that is about to occur. The group of white boys all seem to be part of a “tough” crowd, despite their young age. The way they are encircling the black boy, and the clear anxiety of the black boy all seem to beg for the viewer’s sympathy. The perspective of the painting, with the backs of many of the boys showing, makes the viewer feel like an onlooker about to watch a fight break out, but you are helpless to do anything. Our Gang clearly depicts the racism that corrupts even the innocence of childhood, because it is clear that the white boys have the power over the black boy in this painting. It shows the ever-present racial tension that was felt throughout society.