Final answer:
William Johnson's early life in South Carolina was characterized by simplicity and a connection to the land, which later influenced his artwork. After studying at the National Academy of Design and living in Europe, he returned to the US, teaching in Harlem and creating folk-art style paintings of African American life before suffering personal tragedies.
Step-by-step explanation:
Before he became renowned, William Johnson, who was born in South Carolina in 1901, had lived a life rich with experiences that would deeply influence his later work as an artist. His early years saw him immersed in the red-brown iron-infused dirt of rural South Carolina where his connection to the land and its people took root. This connection is evident in his art, specifically in works such as 'Sowing', which harks back to the simplicity and struggle of agricultural life.
Johnson's journey took him to New York City, where he attended the National Academy of Design, and later to France and Scandinavia, where he married a Da nish artist and was influenced by their folk art. His return to the United States brought him to Harlem, where he taught and created paintings that depicted the lives of African Americans using the simplicity of the folk-art style. Tragedy struck in 1942 when his studio burned down, resulting in the loss of many artworks and shortly after, the death of his wife. These events were soon followed by a diagnosis of a debilitating mental disease, culminating in Johnson ending his days in an institution, destitute, his legacy nearly forgotten until the Harmon Foundation intervened and donated a substantial collection of his art to the Smithsonian.