A painting of a person walking on a hill Edward Mitchell Bannister - Untitled (cows descending hillside) - 1983.95.93 - Smithsonian American Art Museum

Edward Mitchell Bannister (1828–1901), a Tonalist painter, was an African American artist who was a leading figure in the 19th-century American art scene. He was born in 1828 in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada, and was of African, French, and Native American descent. Bannister's talent for art was apparent from an early age, and he began studying art in the mid-1850s, first in Boston and later in New York City. He became known for his landscape paintings, which were characterized by their attention to detail and their use of light and shadow. Like other Tonalists, his style and predominantly pastoral subject matter were drawn from his admiration for Millet and the French Barbizon School. Bannister was also an active member of the abolitionist movement, and his work often featured themes related to social justice and the struggle for freedom and equality. In 1876, he won a gold medal at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, becoming the first African American artist to receive such an honor. Bannister's work is held in the collections of several major museums, including the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. He died in 1901