Hartford native Charles Ethan Porter (1847?-1923) was a rarity in the nineteenth century: an African American artist whose still lifes garnered praise from luminaries like Mark Twain. But the shifting climate of Reconstruction saw an increase in racism and exclusion, and Porter’s fortunes fell as the century ended. Not surprisingly, there is little available biographical information on the artist. His last years were spent in dire poverty, living a struggling life in Rockvill