African-American Art from the Johnson Publishing Company

Founded in 1942 by John H. Johnson, the Johnson Publishing Company became influential in the African American community by launching Ebony and Jet magazines. After Johnson’s passing in 2005, the company was handed down to his daughter, Lisa Johnson Rice. Johnson Publishing Company was one of the nation’s largest and most successful black-owned businesses until it filed for bankruptcy in 2019. The upcoming African-American Art auction sourced from the Johnson Publishing Company will be offered by Swann Auction Galleries on January 30th. 

In this sale, 87 lots of oil paintings, busts, sculptures and vases created by contemporary African American artists will be presented. At the front of the auction is an oil painting by Henry Ossawa Tanner. This painting, titled Moonrise by Kasbah (Morocco), shows figures standing outside the steep walls of a Moroccan medina. Also showcased is a bronze cast by Richmond Barthé. This sculpture is titled The Negro Looks Ahead. The piece was thought to show Barthé’s support for President Franklin D. Roosevelt, of whom he said: “I believed that the Negro advanced more under him than any other President since Lincoln, so I did this piece of the Negro emerging out of his rough background with hope in his future.” View the complete collection and place a bid at Swann Auction Galleries.