Study for Aspects of Negro Life: An Idyll of the Deep South

The preeminent visual artist of the Harlem Renaissance of the 1930s, Aaron Douglas created this gouache as the study for the third panel of a mural project for the Harlem branch of the New York Public Library. Showcasing Douglas’ signature graphic style, derived from European Cubism and African art, the series narrates African American experiences from origins in Africa to 20th-century migrations to northern cities in the United States. An Idyll of the Deep South depicts, from right to left, agricultural labor to the tragic injustices in the South after Reconstruction. The star and ray of light reference the Underground Railroad’s directive to “follow the North Star,” while Douglas’ concentric circles link individual parts of the narrative to the whole.