How did the artistic works of the Harlem Renaissance promote unity within the African American community?
In the 1920’s and 1930’s African American’s created a social and intellectual uprising known as the Harlem Renaissance. The movement began after The Great Migration and significantly impacted history to the extent that it was renamed the “New Negro Movement.” Harlem was the place where an African American made a change and shared their art. Anyone was welcomed, which was why many African Americans migrated and contributed art that changed history. Even though the artistic works of many visual artists did not contain a common style, they held a common theme that displayed struggle and unification of the African American community through their art during the Harlem Renaissance.
Palmer C. Hayden (1890-1973)
Palmer Hayden was born in Virginia. After World War I he traveled to Harlem and worked as a custodian.[i] He was “one of the first African American artists to portray the African American experience.”[ii] This meant that he displayed the daily life experiences of African Americans in Harlem. In his painting Midsummer Night in Harlem he captures the “daily routine” of African Americans in Harlem. As seen in his painting, the streets are crowded, filthy and grey. This piece displays pleasant people in haggard conditions and the purpose is to show the black human experience in Harlem. According to Hayden, he focused more on embedding his own memories in his art rather than explicitly displaying “social and economical inequities;” however, that does not mean he did not acknowledge African American inequalities. [iii] Another painting of Hayden’s called, The Janitor Who Paints, can also be interpreted as displaying the “economic hardships of many African Americans.”[iv] This autobiographical painting portrayed Hayden’s own struggle with being a janitor for the Harmon Foundation.[v] These two paintings demonstrate the difficult life of African Americans and Hayden expressed his common experiences with the community through his art.
Jacob Lawrence (1917-2000)
Born in New Jersey and raised in Pennsylvania, Jacob Lawrence moved to Harlem with his family at the age of thirteen.[vi] As a result of Lawrence’s exposure to art, he grew up with a concern for “the drama of the human struggle.”[vii] This meant that he became interested in creating art that showed the history and struggles of African Americans; thus, very similar to Hayden, Lawrence wanted to “narrate the history of African Americans.”[viii] The styles of Hayden and Lawrence were very different yet their intention to demonstrate the struggle of African Americans remained evident. Throughout Lawrence’s painting, Going Home, he illustrates unity and variety through the objects, which demonstrates the unity of the community and their commonality. [ix] In addition, his painting “elicited enthusiastic responses” from many viewers, which helped the emergence of a black culture, just as Lawrence desired.[x] Another example of Lawrence’s work exposing the difficulties the Harlem community endured was in his painting, Dreams. His Dreams painting signified the community’s determination to initiate social changes in the United States. Despite the possible interpretation of despair in Dreams, it actually elicits hope for the community through its title. Jacob Lawrence along with other artists were comparable in that they exposed the “truths about white-on-black violence” and they focused on exhibiting their “endurance and moral tenacity” in response to the challenges they faced.[xi] An example of the violence would be the rampant riots in 1919, which did not manage to stop African Americans. [xii]
Aaron Douglas (1899-1979)
"...Our problem is to conceive, develop, establish an art era. Not white art painting black...let's bare our arms and plunge them deep through laughter, through pain, through sorrow, through hope, through disappointment, into the very depths of the souls of our people and drag forth material crude, rough, neglected. Then let's sing it, dance it, write it, paint it. Let's do the impossible. Let's create something transcendentally material, mystically objective. Earthy. Spiritually earthy. Dynamic." - Aaron Douglas [xiii]
Born in Kansas, Aaron Douglas expressed a range of artistic and cultural expressions through his art. During the Harlem Renaissance, Douglas was a leading artist and his art “best exemplified the ‘New Negro’ movement.”[xiv] Similar to Hayden and Lawrence, Douglas produced art that explored “black life and artistic themes.”[xv] For example in his piece, Song of the Towers he displayed the difficult climb from “slavery to self-emancipation in the cities of America.”[xvi] He painted the struggle of American Americans from when they were enslaved and struggling to break free. Comparable to Lawrence’s artwork, both artists illustrated African Americans’ persistence and recognized their accomplishments through their art. Another painting of Douglas called The Crucifixion, made a very strong political statement and became a strong piece for every black American.[xvii] The messages Douglas revealed were “social racism, tragic conditions of black slavery, human deprivation, and the denial of the black man's existence.”[xviii] He displays these messages through the painting in which he illustrated a man carrying a cross larger than him, which was analogous to the “weight of the world” on the man’s shoulders.[xiv] Douglas utilizes the cross to symbolize the strength of the black community to withstand the pressure from white Americans and to continue fighting until the end. The quote he makes above stands for his piece in that he advocated for
every black American to do the impossible. By portraying Blacks in a biblical
scene, Douglas accomplished making that stand and emphasized the many
possibilities of African Americans, which gave them hope as a community.
Although, Hayden, Lawrence and Douglas expressed their art in different styles,
they all illustrated art that
brought the community together and revealed their life’s battle to bring about
change.
The Harlem Renaissance, during the 1920’s, greatly impacted the world and allowed for African Americans’ artwork to be shared and taken seriously. One of the many contributions of the Harlem Renaissance was art. These three artists, though not alone, participated in a movement in which artists were able to express the struggles African Americans endured through their life experiences. As a result of the similar focuses of these artists, African Americans found a common ground and created a united Black community in Harlem, which developed and acknowledged Black culture.
The Harlem Renaissance, during the 1920’s, greatly impacted the world and allowed for African Americans’ artwork to be shared and taken seriously. One of the many contributions of the Harlem Renaissance was art. These three artists, though not alone, participated in a movement in which artists were able to express the struggles African Americans endured through their life experiences. As a result of the similar focuses of these artists, African Americans found a common ground and created a united Black community in Harlem, which developed and acknowledged Black culture.
[i] Val-Jean Belton, “African-American Art and the Political Dissent during the Harlem Renaissance,” Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/2000/4/00.04.01.x.html#e.
[ii] Digital History, "Midsummer Night in Harlem," Last modified 2013, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=8&psid=2582&filepath=http://www.digitalhistory.
uh.edu/primarysources_upload/images/midsummer_night_in_harlem_l.jpg.
[iii] MAAA, "The Museum of African American Art," Last modified 2003, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://www.maaala.org/palmerhaydencollection/palmerhaydenbio.html.
[iv] Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery, "Palmer Hayden Biography," Last modified 2012, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artist/?id=2130.
[v] Patricia Flynn, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, "The Harlem Renaissance: Black American Traditions," Last modified 2014, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1988/2/88.02.02.x.html.
[vi] Casey Cassidy, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, "Jacob Lawrence's Freedom Trail," Last modified 2014, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1993/4/93.04.08.x.html.
[vii] Ibid.
[viii] Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery, "Search Collections: Jacob Lawrence," Last modified 2012, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artist/?id=2828.
[ix] Patricia Frank, Duane Preble, and Sarah Preble, Prebles' ARTFORMS: Eighth Edition Patrick Frank, (Prentice Hall, 2005), 32.
[x] Richard Powell, Black Art and Culture in the Twentieth Century, (London: Thames and Hudson, 1997), 118.
[xi] Ibid.
[xii] John McClymer, "Using "The New Negro and Social Democracy during the Harlem Renaissance, 1917-1937" by Cornelius L. Bynum The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era Vol. 10, Num. 1 (Jan. 2011), 89-112, in the undergraduate classroom," The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era Online, no. April/May (2012), http://www.jgape.org/essays/using-new-negro-and-social-democracy-during-harlem-renaissance-1917-1937-cornelius-l-bynum (accessed April 5, 2014).
[xiii] Robin Urton, Eyecon Art, "Harlem Renaissance," Last modified 2005, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://robinurton.com/history/Harlem.htm.
[xiv] Ibid.
[xv] Val-Jean Belton, “African-American Art and the Political Dissent during the Harlem Renaissance.”
[xvi] Robin Urton, "Harlem Renaissance."
[xvii] Val-Jean Belton, “African-American Art and the Political Dissent during the Harlem Renaissance.”
[xviii] Ibid.
[xiv] Ibid.
[ii] Digital History, "Midsummer Night in Harlem," Last modified 2013, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=8&psid=2582&filepath=http://www.digitalhistory.
uh.edu/primarysources_upload/images/midsummer_night_in_harlem_l.jpg.
[iii] MAAA, "The Museum of African American Art," Last modified 2003, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://www.maaala.org/palmerhaydencollection/palmerhaydenbio.html.
[iv] Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery, "Palmer Hayden Biography," Last modified 2012, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artist/?id=2130.
[v] Patricia Flynn, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, "The Harlem Renaissance: Black American Traditions," Last modified 2014, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1988/2/88.02.02.x.html.
[vi] Casey Cassidy, Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, "Jacob Lawrence's Freedom Trail," Last modified 2014, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1993/4/93.04.08.x.html.
[vii] Ibid.
[viii] Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery, "Search Collections: Jacob Lawrence," Last modified 2012, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artist/?id=2828.
[ix] Patricia Frank, Duane Preble, and Sarah Preble, Prebles' ARTFORMS: Eighth Edition Patrick Frank, (Prentice Hall, 2005), 32.
[x] Richard Powell, Black Art and Culture in the Twentieth Century, (London: Thames and Hudson, 1997), 118.
[xi] Ibid.
[xii] John McClymer, "Using "The New Negro and Social Democracy during the Harlem Renaissance, 1917-1937" by Cornelius L. Bynum The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era Vol. 10, Num. 1 (Jan. 2011), 89-112, in the undergraduate classroom," The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era Online, no. April/May (2012), http://www.jgape.org/essays/using-new-negro-and-social-democracy-during-harlem-renaissance-1917-1937-cornelius-l-bynum (accessed April 5, 2014).
[xiii] Robin Urton, Eyecon Art, "Harlem Renaissance," Last modified 2005, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://robinurton.com/history/Harlem.htm.
[xiv] Ibid.
[xv] Val-Jean Belton, “African-American Art and the Political Dissent during the Harlem Renaissance.”
[xvi] Robin Urton, "Harlem Renaissance."
[xvii] Val-Jean Belton, “African-American Art and the Political Dissent during the Harlem Renaissance.”
[xviii] Ibid.
[xiv] Ibid.
Photo Notes
I. Barbara Sarudy, "It's About Time," 1930s America's Great Depression-Palmer Hayden 1890-1973, http://bjws.blogspot.com/2012/10/1930s-americas-great-depression-palmer.html (accessed April 5, 2014).
II. Ibid.
III. Jen Graves, "The Stranger," Capital Idea, http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/06/capital_idea (accessed April 5, 2014).
IV. Robin Urton, Eyecon Art, "Harlem Renaissance," Last modified 2005, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://robinurton.com/history/Harlem.htm.
V. Richard Powell, "African American Art: Harlem Renaissance," African American Art, http://www.artlex.com/ArtLex/a/african_american_4.html (accessed April 5, 2014).
VI. Ibid.
I. Barbara Sarudy, "It's About Time," 1930s America's Great Depression-Palmer Hayden 1890-1973, http://bjws.blogspot.com/2012/10/1930s-americas-great-depression-palmer.html (accessed April 5, 2014).
II. Ibid.
III. Jen Graves, "The Stranger," Capital Idea, http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/06/capital_idea (accessed April 5, 2014).
IV. Robin Urton, Eyecon Art, "Harlem Renaissance," Last modified 2005, Accessed April 5, 2014, http://robinurton.com/history/Harlem.htm.
V. Richard Powell, "African American Art: Harlem Renaissance," African American Art, http://www.artlex.com/ArtLex/a/african_american_4.html (accessed April 5, 2014).
VI. Ibid.