Born in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1904, Joseph Delaney was prompted by his brother Beauford's artistic efforts to develop his own youthful talent. As the son of Reverend Samuel Delaney, Joseph learned to fear God and follow the straight and narrow path, but as he grew older he began to feel somewhat repressed by his parents' beliefs and expectations.
Following his father's death, Joseph left school and worked at a downtown hotel to help financially support his mother and other siblings. Unfortunately, the still-teenage Delaney got caught up in the practice of finding bootleg Prohibition booze and female companionship for guests, and eventually he lost his bellhop job. Nonetheless, the experience piqued his curiosity about life beyond Knoxville and he soon left home to seek further adventures.
Chicago and New York
Like many young men of his era, Delaney made his way by riding the rails and taking jobs here and there, including "pearl-diving" (washing dishes) and busboy chores. And like many young southern African American men of the 1920s, Delaney rode the rails to Chicago at a time when that city was a thriving jazz metropolis. Though he found Chicago to be considerably wild and wicked, he enjoyed meeting music legends like Ma Rainey and observing the many other colorful characters on the nightlife scene.
After an unsuccessful return to Knoxville, Delaney was off to New York, where he began formal studies at the Art Students League in Manhattan with Regionalist painter Thomas Hart Benton. Benton was an outspoken champion of America's place in the art world, rejecting European "isms" in favor of the development of America's own creative movements. Benton's influence, in combination with Delaney's travels and eclectic experiences, gave Joseph a kind of panoramic urban perspective that would serve him well.
Washington Square
As an artist who drew much from life beyond the studio and scenes of the world around him, Delaney found both inspiration and a forum for exhibit at New York's Washington Square Park. Future Abstract Expressionist icon Jackson Pollock, a close friend of Delaney's and fellow Benton student, also exhibited at Washington Square Park's 1932 Outdoor Show.
Delaney made this Washington Square area a pivot point of his career for decades, noting the change in personalities from Ashcan School artists like John Sloan and poet Edna St. Vincent Millay, to the Beats of the 1950s to the more freewheeling folkies and hippies of the 1960s and 1970s. He also noted the particular character and needs of the sidewalk artist:
The language of the sidewalk-exhibiting artists is special...[s]peaking or writing about relationships experienced with the public is the life-blood of exhibiting to the artist, especially those who don't have agents and galleries or other outlets for their work. Artists who have the proper connections don't rely on the man-on-the-street passing by to get his message.
The Brothers Delaney
Joseph and his older artist brother Beauford Delaney both lived in New York for a number of years, but they did not follow the same paths. Joseph had taken up the more urban, real-world gauntlet, while Beauford opted for classical yet abstract influences and pursued the unique pageantry of his own existence. Beauford was gay, Joseph was not. Beauford eventually moved to Paris, while Joseph stayed in the United States.
An opportunity for fraternal reunion came in 1969, however, when Joseph visited Beauford in France. Though the visit was a positive one, differences remained, with Beauford extolling the glory of the French Opera while Joseph found the vividly bawdy Moulin Rouge far more interesting. Following Beauford's death ten years later, Joseph paid for Beauford's works to be sent back to the United States. Joseph might not have fully appreciated the style of Beauford's portraits and other paintings, but he knew he had a brotherly and artistic duty to bring them all home.
Later Years and Legacy
James Baldwin was a close friend of Beauford Delaney, while Joseph had an ally in Pulitzer Prize winning author Alex Haley. Through Haley's urging, the University of Tennessee created a special artist-in-residence position for Joseph Delaney in 1986, following a major retrospective of his work. The residency provided the then 82 year old Delaney with his own small home on the Knoxville campus, while he could interact with the students as much or as little as he wished. Though Knoxville had changed since Delaney's youth, he seemed happy to be in a place where he could relax and reflect, and be honored in his last days.
After a long career and storied life, Joseph Delaney died in November of 1991. His works can be found in various museum collections, and his underappreciated style and subject matter is experiencing a rightful wave of interest at present, making him far more than just the Other Delaney Brother.
Sources
- The Art of Joseph Delaney
- African Americans in the Visual Arts -- Steven Otfinoski (Facts on File, 2003)
- Indianapolis Museum of Art -- The Artist's Party
