"I will preach with my brush"

Henry Ossawa Tanner’s declaration, “I will preach with my brush,” reveals a profound intention to communicate spiritual and moral truths through the medium of art. Rather than employing words from a pulpit, Tanner chose paint, canvas, and composition to convey messages he believed were sacred or essential. Born into a devoutly religious family, his father was an African Methodist Episcopal bishop, Tanner grew up immersed in the teachings and culture of the Black church. Yet, rather than become a preacher in the traditional sense, he turned to visual art, merging his faith and artistic vision.

Tanner’s use of the word “preach” suggests a sense of purpose beyond aesthetic pleasure or technical mastery. His paintings often draw upon biblical stories, seen especially in works like “The Banjo Lesson,” “Nicodemus Visiting Jesus,” and “The Annunciation.” He portrayed these scenes with emotional depth, dignity, and humanity, bridging the sacred and the everyday. Through his brush, Tanner strove to inspire reflection, evoke empathy, and elevate the spiritual dimension of ordinary life. His paintings became sermons in color and light, inviting viewers to contemplate themes of faith, compassion, and resilience.

For Tanner, painting was not a passive act; it was an active engagement with the world’s injustices and misunderstandings, especially those faced by African Americans of his time. By elevating Black subjects and biblical icons alike to positions of dignity and grace, he challenged stereotypes and offered alternative narratives. His art engaged with the concerns of his community while also speaking to universal human values.

The brush, then, became a tool of witness, a means for Tanner to reach audiences that might not hear his father’s sermons, but would instead encounter divinity, hope, and justice through visual experience. Through his artistic vision, Tanner carved out a unique ministry, bearing testimony not just to his own faith, but to the possibility of art as transformative, prophetic communication.