Early Life and Education James Amos Porter, a pivotal figure in the development of African American art history, was born on December 22, 1905, in Ann Arbor, United States of America. His life’s work would later influence generations in the African American art movement. He received his primary education in Baltimore, MD, and Washington, D. C., before graduating *cum laude* with a B.S. in art from Howard University in 1927. Immediately after graduation, he joined Howard’s faculty as an instructor of drawing and painting, maintaining this position until his death. His father, John Porter, had…