Julius
Richmond Barthé
Born in Bay Saint Louis, Missouri, Barthé was reared in New Orleans, where he received a grade school education. Due to racism he was barred from local art schools but a priest suggested that he study at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago which he did between 1924 and 1928. Around 1930 Barthé moved to New York and became a key participant in the Harlem Renaissance. He submitted sculptural portraits and figures to the Pennsylvania Academy’s annuals of 1938 and 1940-48; this work was featured in the 1943 exhibition. Barthé’s friend Carl Van Vechten, the well-known photographer, music critic, and devotee of African American culture, commissioned this bust of his housekeeper’s nephew.
Artist
Date of Birth
(1901-1989)
Date
ca. 1940
Medium
Bronze with brown patina; cast in 1943
Dimensions
8 3/4 x 6 1/4 x 7 1/4 in. (22.225 x 15.875 x 18.415 cm.)
Accession #
1943.2
Credit Line
Henry D. Gilpin Fund
Copyright
© artist or artist's estate
Category
Subject
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