Before Henry Ossawa Tanner became world-famous for his incredible religious paintings that often incorporated dramatic glowing light, he was outdoors painting nature scenes. These early paintings deserve way more attention than they get. Two of these early pieces, Fauna and Flora, give us a glimpse of Tanner’s future creations to come. They are remarkable when you think about the fact that he was just beginning his journey as an artist.

Fauna is the first time we know of Tanner painting animals. By this point, he’d gotten confident with his brush, and he was really trying to make his mark as an animal and landscape painter. What’s remarkable about this piece is how peaceful it feels. The deer and their surroundings are just completely in sync with each other. You can tell it’s an early work because the brushstrokes are a little stiff and the anatomy isn’t quite perfect, but honestly, that is part of what makes it interesting.

What really stands out about this painting is the light. Even this early in his career, Tanner was obsessed with how light works. He used rich browns and greens from the forest floor to create this soft reflected glow that later in his career became his trademark. When you look at Fauna, you feel like you’re right there in the woods. Everything’s quiet and you’re just observing the world in its natural state. In this painting Tanner works out his whole approach to light, tone and atmosphere. These are the skills that would capture people’s attention in later masterpieces like The Banjo Lesson and Daniel in the Lion’s Den.

Fauna should be viewed along with its companion piece, Flora. Flora is all about the depth of the forest in upstate New York. Tanner creates massive trees that make you feel small, mossy rocks with crazy texture and a dramatic dance between shadows and sunlight breaking through canopy. It’s less about creatures and more about the raw power and beauty of the landscape itself.

Tanner painted these two paintings while convalescing in the Adirondack Mountains. The mountains gave him peace and clearly a ton of inspiration. While the titles don’t name any specific place, you can feel that rugged northeastern wilderness in every brushstroke.

These two paintings capture an important moment in Tanner’s career. Tanner is a young black American artist finding his voice, experimenting with his style and developing the techniques that would eventually make him internationally celebrated. They are snapshots of an artist on the rise; someone who’s already got something special but is still figuring things out. Fauna and Flora are both on display at the Hampton University Museum.