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“When I think of the Harlem Renaissance, I think of bright colors, and bold, dynamic art. African American artists of the period were, in large measure, breaking out of the constrictions white society had set for them. They were claiming and remaking their own images, and doing so in bold and striking ways.”
- Nikki Grimes
Remember Tony Morrison's ‘Sweet Home’ from her book “Beloved?” Or, the great abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe's “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” – resonating the plight and the macabre truth of the plantation homes and slavery! From literature to art, the Black American voice was yet to emerge through the cafes and jazz clubs in Harlem, the famous neighborhood of the African Americans in Manhattan. It was never easy for Black Americans to deify their own visual language until the uprising of the Harlem Renaissance of 1920-1930s. It roped in African aesthetics and folk tradition to create a new vocabulary of art. Thus, with the passage of enlightenment, Black art & culture embraced the tradition of resilience while the new concept of ‘New Negro’ came to the fore.
Some phenomenal Black artists have left their significant marks with their influential creations like murals, installation arts, oil paintings on canvas, cut-outs, etc. to celebrate their newfound freedom, challenging white dominance and priority. It was never easy!! So, if you are ready to follow this mind-boggling journey of the famous Black artists from Harlem, New York to modern-day Africa, at close steps, read this blog till the end.
Aaron Douglas: Journey of African American Art from Harlem and the Birth of the ‘New Negro’
With Aaron Douglas, one of the signature artists of the Harlem Renaissance art, African American artists had tasted what it’s like to be free-willed and what it all meant to blend the African tradition and culture with the American ethos. While on his way to Paris in 1925, Aaron Douglas, the man behind the neo-art, was much impressed with the thriving cultural ambiance in Harlem, a suburban neighborhood in Manhattan, New York. He was encouraged by Winold Reiss, a German artist to work on emulating the African art and aesthetics into the American context. In his mural works like ‘Aspects of Negro Life’ or ‘Building More Stately Mansions’ he tried to blend the symbolism of African art and the modern Art Deco style, to create powerful narratives of hope and inspiration.
"We can go to African life and get a certain amount of form and color, understanding and using this knowledge in development of an expression that interprets our life." – Aaron Douglas
His style emulated the Egyptian wall paintings, as there was a visual resemblance of the black silhouette figures with the ancient art, which was done purposefully to protest the white stereotypes of proclaiming black identities as primitive. In a way, he also tried to bridge between the past, present and the future, while implementing geometric forms, deco styles, cubism, and layered visions to mix the mystic and modern.
Norman Lewis: Drawing Unique & Urbane Perspective of Formless and Abstract
Another significant Black artist of the Harlem renaissance art era was the great Afro American painter and scholar, Norman Lewis, who was socially and politically aware for the first few years of his art career, drawing upon figurative and then shifting to abstract expressionism. His paintings like ‘Phantasy II,’ ‘Harlem Courtyard,’ ‘Evening Rendezvous,’ ‘March on Washington,’ etc. show his disillusionment with the urban superficiality of the American lifestyle and how it treated the disenfranchised people.
He urged the contemporary artists to fight the political aggression with their respective art and creations & find ways to stop systemic violence and racism. And he continued to do so even at the later stages of his life to raise his voice for anti-racism. In his later years, he was busy finding ways through protest rather than painting. In his style of abstraction, Lewis deviated from the rest of the artists of the Harlem art community and shared a unique perspective of portraying through abstract lines, strokes, and colors.
In his famous painting ‘Harlem Courtyard’ he tried to paint the human figures huddled together, just like in a city environment, with widespread use of symbolic hints. The human figures were drawn as horizontal lines, with some confident brushstrokes suggestive of the towering buildings of the crowded New York City and the space shared by the Black community. Other than jazz and the blues of the Harlem of the 1950s to 60s, he was more intrigued to portray the pulsating urban space, using some earthly tones. Lewis challenged that artists should not be confined to figurative styles, rather experiment more with abstraction and formless expressions.
I swear to the lord, I still can’t see why Democracy means, everybody but me.
- Langston Hughes
The World of Kara Walker: The World of Slavery behind the Silhouettes
Kara Elizabeth Walker is one of the most multifaceted and familiar contemporary Black American artists juggling with too many artistic profiles of a painter, sculptor, silhouettist, print maker, etc. Though she is more praised for her black and white silhouettes, bringing a sophisticated, romantic charm among the American middle classes in the 80s and 90s, her creations focus on violence, sex abuse, gender inequality, and more grotesque themes dating back to the era before abolitionism. They kind of teleport the viewers to the uneasy chapters of Black history with the stain of slavery.
Her triptych creation of ‘Resurrection Story with Patrons’ reveals the unsettling images of Christian persecution, racial violence, and some hints of the “Black Lives Matter movement”. She follows a prominent cut paper portraiture style of the eighteenth century, to portray the plight of the black American people belonging to that chapter, in her suave way. Her artworks placed against white backdrops or walls and stark white papers make them truly evocative of the voices of the suppressed.
"Her work forces the viewer to consider the effect of prejudice on both the oppressor and the oppressed and the pernicious, self-perpetuating stain slavery and racism have left on all aspects of American culture."
- Former curator of Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Gary Tinterow
Kehinde Wiley: Painting Black Heroism in Portraits
For Kehinde Wiley, it is a fascination to pose black figures as the hero or icons (almost Greek God like) as seen in traditional European portrait paintings. This New York based painter tries to alter the narratives of art history with his remarkable portrait paintings, where contemporary Black identities are mostly seen replacing their European masters, glorified and made icons. He has the rare vision to change the whole perspective of white dominance redefining the scope of the classical European paintings. He chooses his subjects randomly, often picking some strangers or bystanders to cast them as his models. Though his famous creations are showcased on various esteemed galleries and wall spaces, it was a rare honor for him to paint the official presidential portrait of Barack Obama. If you have been to the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, you can see it over there as well.
In his unique ways, Wiley tries to blend history and contemporary reality and tries to reposition the Black people within the grid of power and possession. It is almost like a reflection of what Aaron Douglas tried to establish through his ground-breaking narratives of power and inspiration. Questioning the norms and conventions of art history, he reaffirms the dignity of the Black individuals who were not included in the mainstream art scene until the Harlem Renaissance.
The World of Cheri Samba: A Contemporary Black Artist with the ‘Bubble’ Effect
It’s the ‘Samba Signature,’ an artist’s rare take on life and people of his land of Africa. It’s none but the renowned African painter Cheri Samba. The world of Samba was a lot different from painters when he started working as an apprentice for a billboard sign painter job in Kinshasa, Congo, at the age of 16. He then met his mentor artists who would make the art scene of Modern Africa vibrant and full of dialogues. When you’ll see the artworks of Cheri Samba, the phenomenal contemporary artist from Kinshasa, Africa, you’ll be taken by awe just to know that he was the guy next door, combining the genre of commercial art and comic strip art when he started his paintings on sack-like clothes, as canvas was something he couldn’t afford to have back then.
He also devised some innovations in his drawings like infusing some narratives with word bubbles and commentaries. That made his compositions thriving and full of buoyancy. Though his journey started as a sign painter, not meant for the gallery walls, today he is one of the celebrated Black artists of our generation. His works adorn some of the prestigious museums and galleries, and are auctioned at high prices. His art is rather loud with use of bold colors and contours, with word bubbles etc., but he could effortlessly relate to the changing African life and a walk into the modern world. Often called a narcissist artist, becoming the object of his own creations, he enjoys his presence in his work as a reporter or chronicler of a broadcast show!
From Manhattan Harlem to Africa: The Spirit of Black Art Endures
From the streets & cafes of the Renaissance Harlem to the contemporary creations of African American artists or the painters & artists of Africa, the voice of the ‘New Negro’ still echoes. We get to know the stories of resistance, resilience, triumph, and challenges through their inspiring artworks. They inspire generations to stand tall in the face of discrimination, social injustice, and racial biases, and encourage modern art-seekers to create alternate narratives of inclusion and assimilation, because art has the power to change perspectives and transcend divides. It is all about their insatiable desire to know the world and the unique experiences they wish to share through their works that Kehinde Wiley has beautifully summed up from the perspective of Black art and artists:
“Painting is about the world that we live in. Black men live in the world. My choice is to include them.”
- Kehinde Wiley
And, that’s how Aaron Douglas had tried to unite African Americans and Africans through their native folk-art traditions and symbolisms long ago.
The road still goes on …
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