The Anacostia Community Museum will be closed from January 8, 2024-March 22, 2024. We will reopen on Saturday, March 23, 2024 with our next exhibition, A Bold and Beautiful Vision: A Century of Black Arts Education in Washington, DC,1900-2000. We hope you will join us! 

Drawing for Porter Family Christmas Cards

Object Details

Artist
James Amos Porter
Date
c. 1947
Medium
graphite, black ink, watercolor on paper
Dimensions
10 1/16 × 8 1/16 in. (25.5 × 20.5 cm)
Caption
This original drawing for a Christmas card depicts a holiday scene from the family home of artist James Porter in northwest Washington. Porter himself stands on a ladder, his back to the viewer, while hanging a banner that reads “MERRY XMAS!” His wife Dorothy looks over at their young daughter Constance, who gazes in awe at their Christmas tree. The image is sketched in pencil and black ink, with watercolor toning in the banner, the carpet, and other festive details. A banner at the bottom wishes the recipient a “GLAD NEW YEAR.”
According to Tritobia Hayes Benjamin, a former student of Porter’s who went on to become an Associate Dean at Howard University, his cards “represent a consummate artist who is involved in the fine and applied arts, and [who] is comfortable and competent with his artistry on a large or miniscule scale.”
Accession Number
1997.0020.0069
Type
drawing
See more items in
Anacostia Community Museum Collection
Data Source
Anacostia Community Museum
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/dl8a35d068a-fabe-4522-804a-9674a5b8c093
Record ID
acm_1997.0020.0069
Back to Top