Harlem Renaissance, a blossoming of African American culture, particularly in the creative arts, and the most influential movement in African American literary history. Embracing literary, musical, theatrical, and visual arts, participants sought to "the Negro" apart from the white stereotypes that had influenced black peoples' relationship to their heritage and to each other. While the renaissance was not confined to the Harlem. Harlem attracted a remarkable concentration of intellect and talent and served as the symbolic capital of this cultural awakening.
The Bridge Party, Charles White, 1938, From the collection of: SCAD Museum of Art
"The Bridge Party" employs a dramatic perspective and tight composition, grouping the figures as if contained by the support itself, with a rich palette of warm hues and exaggerated features.
Sowing, William H. Johnson, ca. 1942, From the collection of: Gibbes Museum of Art
William Henry Johnson is a pivotal figure, this exhibition of 20 expressionist and vernacular landscapes, still-life paintings and portraits investigates the intricate layers of Johnson "primitive and cultured painter."
Gamin, Augusta Savage, 1930, From the collection of: The Mint Museum
Augusta Savage created "Gamin" early in her career, and the small sculpture won her a scholarship to travel to Europe. Some sources suggest that the sculpture was inspired by a homeless boy on the street; other indicate it may have been based on the artist's nephew, Ellis Ford. The French word "gamin" means street urchin.
Café, William H. Johnson, ca. 1939-1940, From the collection of: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Johnson spent decades traveling the world, searching for the authentic spirit of ordinary people from different cultures. In the late 1930's, he found what he was looking for in his own African American community. The strong colors and silhouettes in this painting evoke the African art that black artists and writers had during the Harlem Renaissance.
The Bone [The Rural Schoolteacher], Miguel Covarrubias, ca. 1940, From the collection of: Museo Nacional de Arte
'The Bone' or 'The Rural Schoolteacher.' Satirical depiction of an indiginous Mexican schoolteacher in mordern western clothes, with a bone thrown to him in exchange for his loyalty to a corrupt national party.
Mount Calvary, William Johnson, 1943/1944, From the collection of: SCAD Museum of Art
"Mount Calvary" is a stricking piece, with elongated figures, bold colors and flattened space that typifies Johnson's mature style. This gouache on paper is a study for the 1944 oil painting Christ Crucified.
Street Musicians, William Henry Johnson, 1942/1943, From the collection of: Amon Carter Museum of American Art
Old Black Joe, Horace Pippin, 1943, From the collection of: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Old Black Joe is an interpretation of plantation life and the lot of African American slaves. "Joe," too cold for fieldwork, lives out his last years tending a child whose mother watches from the porch of a stately mansion in the distance. The tether that connects him to the child reminds us that "Joe" was earlier bound to a life picking cotton in thw fields that stretch behind him.
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