At a glance
- Born
- c. 1821
- Died
- 1872-12-21
- Known as
- Artist
- Organizations
- Taft Museum of Art
Life story
Robert Duncanson was born about 1821 in Fayette, New York, to a free Black family of tradesmen. He learned painting and carpentry in the family house-painting business and taught himself art by copying prints.
The family moved to Michigan in 1828. In 1840 he went to Mount Healthy near Cincinnati to pursue fine art, and by 1842 had portraits at the Cincinnati Academy.
From 1850 to 1852 he painted murals for Nicholas Longworth's house in Cincinnati, now at the Taft Museum. He toured Europe in 1853 and built a reputation for landscapes such as Land of the Lotus Eaters (1861).
He worked in Montreal and Britain in the 1860s, and died in Detroit in 1872.
Timeline
- 1821: Born (Fayette, NY) source
- 1828: Family moved to Monroe (Monroe, MI) source
- 1840: Moved to Mount Healthy to pursue art (Mount Healthy, OH) source
- 1842: Three portraits accepted by Cincinnati Academy (Cincinnati, OH) source
- 1850: Began Belmont murals for Nicholas Longworth (Cincinnati, OH) source
- 1853: European tour (Europe) source
- 1861: Land of the Lotus Eaters (Cincinnati, OH) source
- 1863: Worked in Montreal (Montreal) source
- 1872-12-21: Died (Detroit, MI) source
What Robert is known for
- Eight landscape murals for Nicholas Longworth's Belmont estate, c.1850
- Internationally recognized Black landscape painter
- Blue Hole, Flood Waters, Little Miami River (1851)
- Uncle Tom and Little Eva (1853)
- Landscape with Rainbow (1859)
- Land of the Lotus Eaters (1861)
- Ellen's Isle, Loch Katrine (1871)
Honors and things named for them
- Belmont murals displayed at the Taft Museum; artist-in-residence programme since 1986
Family
- father: John Dean Duncanson
Places in Ohio to see
- Taft Museum of Art (Belmont murals) (museum)
316 Pike St, Cincinnati, Hamilton County ZIP 45202 · Cincinnati · Hamilton County · official page - Cincinnati Art Museum (museum)
953 Eden Park Dr, Cincinnati, Hamilton County ZIP 45202 · Cincinnati · Hamilton County · official page
Ohio places
Where Robert S. Duncanson was born, lived, worked and is remembered, with the ZIP code, town and county pages for each.
- Lived: Mount Healthy, Hamilton County ZIP 45231 · Mount Healthy · Hamilton County
- Worked: Cincinnati, Hamilton County ZIP 45202 · Cincinnati · Hamilton County
- Worked: Cincinnati, Hamilton County (Taft Museum of Art (Belmont), 316 Pike St) ZIP 45202 · Cincinnati · Hamilton County
Myths and corrections
- Disputed: Wikipedia and Smithsonian-based sources give his birth year as about 1821, while BlackPast lists 1817. Claims that he was the first of any kind are contested.
Further reading
Sources
Confidence. Medium: the main facts were confirmed, but some details (often an address or ZIP code) were not.
- Wikipedia: Robert S. Duncanson born c.1821 Fayette NY, Cincinnati/Mount Healthy, Belmont murals, death in Detroit