Growing up in the late 19th century, Laura Wheeler Waring didn't see any artists who looked like her. She didn't see any paintings of people who looked like her, either. As a young woman studying art in Paris, she found inspiration in the works of Matisse and Gaugin to paint the people she knew best. Back in Philadelphia, the Harmon Foundation commissioned her to paint portraits of accomplished African-Americans. Her portraits still hang in Washington DC's National Portrait Gallery, where children of all races can admire the beautiful shades of brown she captured.
Author Bio
Nancy Churnin is the author of Martin & Anne and Sydney Taylor Notable Irving Berlin, the Immigrant Boy Who Made America Sing. She is a full-time writer located in Texas.
Felicia Marshall has illustrated numerous children's books. She received her bachelor's degree from Pratt Institute. A native Texan, she lives in Houston with her husband, three children, and their cat.