James Britton Gantt

James Gantt was a painter and illustrator whose art captured life in the rural Midwest.

James Britton Gantt was born in 1911 in Lawrence, Kansas. Gantt's father was an educated lawyer, the son of Judge James Britton Gantt. He did not practice law, however, instead working on railroads. He developed a drinking problem and lost his job, and the family moved frequently during Gantt's early childhood. His parents eventually divorced and Gantt went to live with his aunt in Kansas City, Missouri.

Gantt set out on his own at age sixteen, traveling the country in search of work. He was a farmhand, cattle herder, dishwasher, circus performer and movie stuntman. During this period, Gantt was introduced to jazz, inspiring a lifelong love for it.

James Gantt received his first artistic training at the Dallas Art Institute in 1933. His professor, Olin Travis, helped him get a scholarship to the Kansas City Art Institute. There he studied with painters Ross Braught and Thomas Hart Benton. He formed a friendship with Benton, connecting over their shared rural background and interest in jazz. When Benton was fired from the Art Institute in 1939, Gantt joined a committee of alumni and rose to his defense.

In 1936, James Gantt met Hattie Moore, a sculptor, at the Art Institute, and they married later that year. After graduating, Gantt enrolled with the Works Progress Administration and painted murals around Kansas City. During the late 1930s, Gantt frequently exhibited his work in the Midwestern Artists Exhibition at the Kansas City Art Institute. He participated in the 1939 New York World's Fair and a group exhibition at the Association of American Artists.

James and Hattie Gantt stayed in Kansas City until the mid-1940s, after which they lived in Wichita, Kansas; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and Memphis, Tennessee. Neither artist taught: Hattie Gantt was a stenographer and James Gantt worked in corporate jobs including executive assistant and sales associate, as reported in the Wichita City Directory. James and Hattie Gantt were both passionate about jazz and amassed a large collection of records. During the 1940s, they were offered a radio program to play selections from their collection, but canceled it after learning the station had refused to host a black band. Gantt regularly contributed illustrations for the jazz magazine Swing Time.

James Gantt died in Milwaukee on August 21, 1984. He received a posthumous retrospective in 2008 organized by Frank Riehlman Fine Art gallery in New York City. His work can be found in collections across the country.