(1828-1901) Edward Mitchell Bannister was the first African-American to win major national recognition as an artist. He was born in Canada but moved to Boston and worked as a barber while trying to establish a career as a portrait painter. There he became active in Abolitionist activities and married Christiana Carteaux, a successful businesswoman who owned a number of hairdressing salons. In 1869 the couple moved to Providence, where Bannister later became one of the founders of the Providence Art Club. In 1876 Bannister was awarded a first-prize medal at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition for his painting Under the Oaks, which he submitted to the jury with no identifying documentation other than his signature. He later recalled that when he appeared before the awards committee to claim his prize, an explosion could not have created more of a sensation in that room. Bannister was influenced by the French Barbizon School, whose serene view of nature and sympathetic portrayal of laborers coincided with his own belief in the harmony of "all created things." He was largely self-taught as an artist, though he studied briefly with William Rimmer of Boston. Few of his early portraits and still lifes survive, and he is best known for his moody, contemplative landscapes and coastal scenes.

Biography courtesy of Roger King Gallery of Fine Art, www.antiquesandfineart.com/rking