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Henry Ossawa Tanner

The Wailing Wall

Now On View

Maker

Henry Ossawa Tanner (American, 1859-1937)

Title

The Wailing Wall

Year

ca. 1898

Medium

Oil on canvas

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Oil on canvas

Materials

oil paint

Supports

canvas

Dimensions

64.8 x 48.9 x 6.4 cm (25 1/2 x 19 1/4 x 2 1/2 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Paula and Leonard Granoff

Object Number

84.234

Type

Paintings

Publications

Journal

Manual / Issue 13: Storage

The RISD Museum’s thirteenth issue of Manual unpacks the idea and reality of storage-objects museums don’t put on view, works made as containers of various sorts, and more metaphorical considerations about how meanings and narratives are stored. This issue serves as a companion to the Raid the Icebox Now series of exhibitions on view at the RISD Museum through November 2020, in which nine contemporary artists and design collectives use the museum and its collections as a site for critical creative production and presentation. Raid the Icebox Now marks the 50th anniversary of Raid the Icebox 1 with Andy Warhol*, held in 1970 at the RISD Museum.

Exhibition History

18th and 19th-Century American Galleries

Jun 19, 2015

Charles Pendleton House

Jan 02, 2015

Making It In America

Oct 11, 2013 – Feb 09, 2014

Label copy

The son of an African Methodist Episcopal bishop, Tanner studied with Thomas Eakins in Philadelphia before acquiring advanced training in Paris. He established an international reputation in 1897 when one of his biblical scenes was awarded a medal at the 1897 Paris Salon and was purchased by the French government. Later that year, Tanner traveled to Palestine to assure the accuracy of his historical narratives through firsthand observation of landscape, costume, and customs. In this study for a larger composition, devout Jews gather at the Western Wall, a remnant of the Second Temple of Jerusalem and the holiest place of prayer in the Jewish world.

An American Idyll

19th-Century Paintings and Decorative Arts

Apr 06, 2007 – Jan 06, 2008

One Voice, Many Visions

Work By African American Artists

Feb 20, 1998 – Jun 14, 1998

Image use

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This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Henry Ossawa Tanner (American, 1859-1937)

The Wailing Wall, ca. 1898

Oil on canvas