Today we will be learning about Julien Hudson. Hudson was a freeman of mixed race from New Orleans. He was active as an artist from 1830-1840 and was an incredible portrait painter.
One of his most important works was his painting Battle of New Orleans which documented the contribution made to the War of 1812 by the famous corps of free Black soldiers who were commanded by Colonel Michel Jean Fortier, Jr., who was white. Now, I scoured the internet for this painting and I can’t find it anywhere, so I apologize that we can’t see it.
However, Hudson also painted the only known self-portrait of an African American artist in the antebellum period in 1839.
For more information on Hudson you can look below:
- The Historic New Orleans Collection
- Worcester Art Museum
- Know LA
- LOU!S!ANA: Pick your Passion
- Stewart, J. C. (1996). 1001 things everyone should know about African-American history. New York: Doubleday. Pages 246.