Editing Henry Ossawa Tanner (section)

== Legacy ==

Tanner received numerous honors during his lifetime, including election to the National Academy of Design in 1927 and the French Legion of Honor. He remained in France through World War I and until his death on May 25, 1937. His career demonstrated that African American artists could achieve the highest levels of artistic accomplishment when given opportunity, while his expatriation illustrated the costs that American racism imposed on talented individuals whose contributions the nation forfeited.<ref name="mosby"/>

Tanner's legacy includes both his artistic achievement and his pioneering role in African American art history. His success inspired subsequent generations of Black artists while his work expanded American understanding of what African American artists could accomplish. The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he had experienced such discrimination as a student, now celebrates his achievement as one of the institution's most distinguished graduates. His paintings hang in major museums worldwide, their spiritual power and technical mastery continuing to move viewers more than a century after their creation.<ref name="mathews"/>