(American, 1824-1906)Confidence and Admiration 1859, A study from Negro Life at the South, (Old Kentucky Home), signed lower left "E. Johnson 1859", oil on canvas, 14 x 12 in.; reproduction carved gilt wood and composition frame, 18-3/4 x 16-3/4 in.Note: This work is a study for Johnson's iconic painting, Negro Life at the Southÿ(1859) that depicts the private life of African Americans in Washington D.C. (owned by the New York Public Library and on permanent loan at the New York Historical Society). It became popularly known as "Old Kentucky Home." Johnson also painted a smaller version for use in the creation of a chromolithograph in the 1870's, now owned by the High Museum in Atlanta, Georgia.It was with the wide acclaim of Negro Life at the Southÿthat Johnson was admitted to the National Academy of Design. That painting was favorably reviewed by critics for its technical accomplishments: composition, color palette, and precise brushwork. They admired the work because the distinct figural groups conveyed several narratives of black life simultaneously.ÿThe work being offered is one of two known renditions of this detail. The other is inÿthe collection of the Mead Art Museum at Amherst College.Literature: Patricia Hills Eastman Johnson, The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 1972, p.30-34To be included in Patricia Hills's forthcoming Catalogue Raisonne of the work of Eastman Johnsonÿ; Provenance: Parke-Bernet, New York, sale 2355, November 1971; (accompanied by original catalog); Israel Sack, Inc., New York, NY (purchased for Mr. Banks and accompanied by original receipt for $28,000); The Estate of William N. Banks, Jr., Newnan, Georgia original canvas and stretcher, original tacking edge reinforced with staples, some minor loss and wear at corners and edge under frame; surface cleaned and varnished, retouch in banjo player's hand and in the details of clothingsee full condition report by Painting Conservation, Asheville, North Carolina, online