Moonlit Landscape

Henry Ossawa Tanner was born in 1859 in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, the eldest son of Tucker Tanner, a minister and later Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and Sarah Miller Tanner, a former slave. In 1880, at age twenty-one, Tanner enrolled in the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Despite his clear talent, racial prejudice made it hard for him to establish his career in the U.S. He traveled to Paris in 1881 and lived there until his death in 1937. Best known for his religious subjects, Tanner also created a number of splendid landscapes. Moonlit Landscape, with its pair of tired horses, empty wagon, and two indistinct figures with a lit lantern, suggests a possible journey or homecoming. The varied light sources—moonlight, reflected light, and the lantern evoke Tanner’s moonlit biblical scenes.

Isabel Williams ‘22

For a rich collection of Tanner's paintings visit https://home.hamptonu.edu/msm/

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