Object Details
Artist
James Amos Porter, 22 Dec 1905 - 28 Feb 1970
Sitter
Dorothy Porter, 25 May 1905 - 17 Dec 1995
Exhibition Label
Born Warrenton, Virginia
For forty years, until her retirement in 1973, Dorothy Porter built the collections focused on African American history at Howard University into the great Moorland-Spingarn Research Center. Trained as a librarian at Howard and Columbia Universities, she was renowned for her tenacity—discovering books, ephemera, and manuscript materials in private collections, from book dealers, in attics, and even in trash cans. In 1930, she married James Amos Porter, a painter and important historian of African American art who was a Howard faculty member. His portrait depicts his wife in front of a Haitian landscape, perhaps referencing their travels to that country.
Provenance
Dorothy Porter Wesley, widow of artist; gift through the Westport Foundation, 1992 NPG
Credit Line
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of the Wesport Foundation, Dorothy Porter Wesley, Trustee
Date
1952
Object number
NPG.92.32
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Type
Painting
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
76.2 x 61cm (30 x 24")
Frame: 92.7 x 78.1 x 5.7cm (36 1/2 x 30 3/4 x 2 1/4")
See more items in
National Portrait Gallery Collection
Location
Currently not on view
Data Source
National Portrait Gallery
Topic
Costume\Jewelry\Necklace
Costume\Headgear\Hat
Nature & Environment\Clouds
Exterior\Landscape\Rural
Nature & Environment\Plant\Tree
Costume\Dress Accessory\Glove\Gloves
Dorothy Porter: Female
Dorothy Porter: Arts and Culture\Education and Scholarship\Educator\Librarian
Portrait
Link to Original Record
Record ID
npg_NPG.92.32
