Cows 

Edward Mitchell Bannister painted "Cows" with oils, sometime during his career as a successful artist in late 19th-century America. Here, we see Bannister engaging with the established genre of pastoral landscape, popular amongst the American upper classes who considered themselves stewards of the land. But Bannister was no mere landscape painter. He was also one of the few African American artists in this period to gain respect from the art establishment. The art institutions of the time offered very few opportunities for Black artists, and Bannister’s success is all the more remarkable considering that it was achieved in the face of both overt and subtle forms of racism. Yet, we can also see Bannister’s success as bound up with the social realities of post-Civil War America. In its depiction of rural peace and productivity, this painting served as a form of cultural healing. To fully understand this artwork, we need to consider the complex interplay of social progress and persistent inequality that defined Bannister’s world, which can be researched through archival material. The meaning of art always depends on its social and institutional context.