Charles Ethan Porter

Charles Ethan Porter (1847 – March 6, 1923) was an American painter who specialized in still life painting. A student at the National Academy of Design in New York City, he was one of the first African Americans to exhibit there. He was the only African-American artist at the turn of that century who painted in still life and the first known professional Black artist to concentrate on still life.

Early life and education

Porter was born most likely in 1847 in Hartford, Connecticut. His father was possibly a mill worker and his mother worked as a servant. Porter's family moved to what was then the nearby village of Rockville (now part of Vernon, Connecticut) by the early 1850s. The family suffered many losses when Porter was young. They endured poverty and tragedy just a few years after moving to Rockville. Porter lost seven of his siblings to illness and one to war between 1858 and 1868. In December 1884, he hosted an art exhibition and auction of 100 paintings from his time in France. His new work was praised by the Hartford Evening Post, but the auction did not get the attendance or make the sales that Porter had hoped for.

Image gallery