The Emergence of Modern America (1890-1930)

Social Movements

Arts

African Americans

This collection uses primary sources to explore visual art during the Harlem Renaissance.

*Harlem Street with Church*, a hand-colored relief print by William H. Johnson, circa 1939-1940.

*Lift Every Voice and Sing* (also known as *The Harp*), a sculpture by Augusta Savage commissioned for the 1939 World’s Fair. 

*Lenore*, a portrait bust sculpture by Augusta Savage.

*Firebirds*, a lithograph by Romare Bearden.

A 1939 photograph taken at the Harlem Art Center by Berenice Abbott. 

Excerpt from an oral history interview with painter Archibald Motley, 1978.

A handwritten list of pictures submitted to the Whitney Galleries by Beauford Delaney, including two oils, four charcoals, and ten pastels.

Transcription:

B. de Laney
 
List of pictures  
Submitted to the Whitney Galleries by Beauford De Laney.  
Oils 1 Gertie Sanford [x]  
2 Genny " " [x x]  
charcoal 1 Harlem chore woman  
2 Harlem shop girl  
3 Harlem working girl.  
4 Italian boy.  
Pastels 1 Chinese student [x]  
2 Main in brown hat [x]  
3 Algerian boy  
4 Negro woman in red hat. [x]  
5 Harlem boy in gray hat [x]  
6 Prince of Wales. X  
7 Girl in green dress [x]  
8 Woman in gray x [x]  
9 Eliza X [x]  
10 [illegible] Sparrow [x]  
[Girl in pink[?] dress]  
 
*[page two]*
 
W. 424 W 5 2.
 
[Girl in yellow dress  
boy in profile]
 
*[note: Text in brackets is written with red pencil.]*


A photograph of artist and teacher Lois Jones.

A photograph of Palmer Hayden painting.

*Midsummer Night in Harlem*, a 1938 painting by Palmer Hayden.

*African Phantasy: Awakening*, a Winold Reiss illustration from the 1925 anthology *The New Negro: An Interpretation*, edited by Alain Locke.

*Harlem Street Scene*, a print by Charles Alston, circa 1935-1943.

A photograph of sculptor Leslie Garland Bolling working on a wood carving.

Questions

1. What themes do you see evident in the art of the Harlem Renaissance?

2. Harlem Renaissance artists found inspiration in the culture and history of Egypt, the various nations of Africa, and the Caribbean. Did you see evidence of this in any of the pieces showcased here? In what way?

3. Often, the visual art of the Harlem Renaissance conveyed subtle or overt criticism of the “status quo” of racial and economic inequity in the US. Did any of the pieces showcased here exemplify this? How so?

4. How were Harlem Renaissance artists inspired by other artistic movements and popular artists of the era (e.g., Cubism, Picasso)? How did they adhere to these various aesthetics, and how did they depart from them?

5. How does [Archibald Motley’s interview](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/visual-art-during-the-harlem-renaissance/sources/347) challenge our assumptions about the Harlem Renaissance? 


Activity

Break students into two groups and assign each group a gender. Ask each group to explore the male or female subjects of the Harlem Renaissance artwork in this set and draw out any commonalities or themes they see. Then get both groups back together to discuss similarities and differences between the ways men and women are portrayed by this group of artists in these particular pieces of art.

Teaching Guide: Exploring the Visual Art of the Harlem Renaissance

Resources

1. [Harlem Renaissance art](http://dp.la/search?page_size=100&partner%5B%5D=Smithsonian+Institution&q=%22harlem+renaissance%22&type%5B%5D=image&utf8=%E2%9C%93), Smithsonian Institution, Digital Public Library of America.

2. [African American Department - Harlem Renaissance](http://www.prattlibrary.org/locations/afam/index.aspx?id=8982), Enoch Pratt Free Library.

3. [Drop Me Off in Harlem](http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/interactives/harlem/faces/index.html), John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. 

4. [Rhapsodies in Black: Art of the Harlem Renaissance](http://www.iniva.org/harlem/home.html), Institute of International Visual Arts. 


Overview

Coinciding with the Great Migration by African-Americans from the South to Northern cities, the term “Harlem Renaissance” is used to describe the thriving art, music, and literary scene in New York City during the 1920s and 1930s. This set of primary sources highlights the multi-media visual art of this era, which vibrantly celebrates African-American and African history and culture. Additionally, the visual art created by African-American artists of the Harlem Renaissance sometimes offers subtle criticism of the status of African-Americans in the United States at that time.

English

Visual Art During the Harlem Renaissance

art-during-harlem-renaissance_04_cdb25bced6c31ae5d2fcbd4031a8bf02.jpg

Courtesy of the Tubman African-American Museum via Digital Library of Georgia.

Bearden, Romare, “Firebirds,” Digital Public Library of America, https://dp.la/item/cf22957db6f05eca1bd0b989ad829a7a.

Firebirds, a lithograph by Romare Bearden.

Cite this item

Tips for Students

Item 4 of 13 in the Primary Source Set Visual Art During the Harlem Renaissance