Joshua Johnson was the earliest documented professional African American artist in the United States, though it was not until 1939 that Baltimore genealogist and art historian J. Hall Pleasants began to piece together Johnson’s story and identify paintings believed to be by his hand. Much of Johnson’s life and work remain a mystery. We do know that he was freed from slavery by his white father, George Johnson, in Baltimore County, Maryland, in 1782, at the age of 19, and that he was active as an itinerant portrait painter in the Baltimore area from 1790 to 1825. His clients were prominent merchants, ship captains, children, and families.
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Nearly all of Johnson’s subjects are middle- and upper-class white patrons, reflecting the social and economic realities of the time. This portrait is typical of Johnson’s work, and demonstrates the smaller-than-life-scale format that defined many of his portraits. The identity of the sitter as Thomas Boyle comes from an inscription on the painting from an earlier owner, though scholarly research has proven inconclusive.
"As a self-taught genius, deriving from nature and industry his knowledge of the Art; and having experienced many insuperable obstacles in the pursuit of his studies, it is highly gratifying to him to make assurances of his ability to execute all commands with an effect, and in a style, which must give satisfaction."
— Joshua Johnson quoted in advertisement, "Portrait Painting," Baltimore Intelligencer, 19 Dec. 1798.