Often referred to as the "Dean of Philadelphia's Black artists," Humbert Howard was a visual artist and art director. Engaged with painting from a young age, he studied at Howard University under James Porter and Alain Locke, the University of Pennsylvania, the International Academy of Arts and Letters in Rome, and the Barnes Foundation from 1959 to 1961 - influencing his turn to the abstract. During the 1930s, Howard worked for the Philadelphia Works Progress Administration's Art project alongside Selma Burke and Dox Thrash, also while working for the United States Postal Service for 25 years. Best known for being an active member of the Pyramid Club (an African American social club), serving as the art/exhibition director from 1940 through 1958, he built their annual juried exhibitions by handpicking both Black and White artists from around the region.
Howard's work is in the collection of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Delaware Art Museum, and the Woodmere Art Museum.
