Marian Anderson

In 1939 Marian Anderson (1897--1993)--an internationally acclaimed contralto renowned for her renditions of operatic arias, spirituals, and Gospel music--was barred by the Daughters of the American Revolution from performing at Washington, D.C.'s Constitution Hall because of her race. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt protested, as did the NAACP, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the American Federation of Labor, and other national organizations. Within weeks the Secretary of the Interior invited Anderson to sing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. She was initially reluctant: "I said yes, but the yes did not come easily or quickly. ... As I thought further, I could see that my significance as an individual was small in this affair. I had become, whether I liked it or not, a symbol, representing my people." Attendance at the concert justified her decision. More than seventy-five thousand people, most of them African American, came to hear her perform; millions more listened on the radio.

Johnson painted at least three portraits of Anderson. Two show her standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial. In this, the third, she is surrounded by evidence of her international fame. Brazilian, Chilean, Ecuadorean, and other flags represent her 1937 to 1939 concert tour of South America. The Eiffel Tower in Paris, St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, St. Peter's in Rome, and other monuments track her popularity across Europe and Scandinavia. Johnson also honored Anderson's long-time vocal coach Kosti Vehanen, who is seated at a grand piano.