Art of the Harlem Renaissance

 

From Slavery Through Reconstruction, Aaron Douglas, 1934, Harlem

What was the Harlem Renaissance?

The Harlem Renaissance was a revival of African American culture including literary, visual, and musical arts which predominately took place in the Harlem area of Manhattan in New York City. Although the civil war ended in 1865 freeing African Americans from the chains of slavery, the southern states were quick to keep them powerless and at the mercy of white supremacists. This led many people to flee the south in the 1920's for areas with more freedom such as Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit, Philadelphia, and New York, where the Harlem area had the largest population of African Americans in the world. From an array of backgrounds, artist emerged from the Harlem neighborhood with the intent of creating art to celebrate the African American culture and identity by combining themes of African art and contemporary themes. In addition to visual arts, there was an explosion of music throughout the Harlem Renaissance which was often depicted in artworks. Jazz and blues originated in New Orleans but were the center of New York nightlife. The "Harlem Stride" was the first piano style to be included in Jazz and was used to blur the lines between poor blacks and elite blacks. 

Paintings from the Harlem Renaissance 

The Ascent of Ethiopia, by Loïs Mailou Jones, 1932, oil on canvas, Washington D.C.

Subject Matter and Connection 

The Ascent of Ethiopia depicts a large portrait of an Egyptian with native dancers on the left under the light of the northern star. Next to this, a man and woman are seen walking up a hill towards tall buildings with music notes and the words "art" and "music" and "drama". The scene up the hill is decorated with music notes, a painting palette, dramatical faces, and statues. Jones' illustration of Egyptian and African culture was used to represent the African American past, while she used modern influences such as music and art in the city to represent the future of African Americans and the influence of the Harlem Renaissance. The people climbing the hill represents leaving the past and working towards a brighter future. 

Art Elements and Appreciation

Lines make up a large portion of this painting, and are featured as squiggly, straight, and curvy. Straight lines are used to portray the buildings, letters, and the figures. Squiggly lines are used next to the northern star and flow into the modern scene of the painting, and curvy lines form the hill and various circles within the artwork. In Addition to lines, pattern is used in the Egyptians headdress and in the lower left corner as well. Shapes are used to create a pattern in the headdress, the pyramids, the northern star, the buildings, the moon, and music notes. Each of these elements work together to create this diverse painting. 

Before I looked into the meaning of The Ascent of Ethiopia, I liked the colors and the squiggly lines near the star and moon. After I understood what the artist was trying to say with her artwork, I really enjoy the way that she used the hill to represent leaving the past and working towards the future. I also think it was really clever to use the pattern in the top of the headdress to tie in with the tree and look like a crosswalk. I'm not sure if that was intentional but that's the way I saw it. I would imagine that this would be placed in an early modern art exhibit in a museum as part of a Harlem Renaissance collection. It seems to be a famous painting of this movement, and the darker colors provide the viewer with a more serious feeling. 

The Subway, by Palmer Hayden, 1930, oil on canvas, Paris

Subject Matter and Connection 

Depicted in The Subway, is very clearly a group of people standing closely on a subway. The people illustrated seem to be from various cultures including black, white and perhaps French. An African American and French man stand next to each other while holding onto the pole. Next to them a tall white man stands and reads the paper, while a shorter African American woman stands in front of him. What this artwork seems to represent is the blacks merging with the whites during the Harlem Renaissance, which was a big step. Also, New York was a hotspot for immigrants from all over the world, and because of the culturally diverse group shown in the painting, I think that was also meant to be represented. 

Art Elements and Appreciation

Pattern is used in many of the people's clothing in The Subway, such as the French man's beret, the black man's striped shirt, and the woman's floral skirt. Color is also used to give the clothing vibrant colors such as red and orange. Color is also used to make the advertisement on the left side of the subway scene pop, promoting a new gum. Lines create the subway pole in the middle of the painting, the light fixtures on the ceiling, the handles hanging for people to grab onto, and the newspaper being held by the tall white man. 

I enjoy this painting because although the scene isn't particularly exciting, the vibrant colors make it more pleasing to look at. The detail in the clothing also captures my eye, and I like that the artist included many different clothing styles to represent the different cultures, such as the hat on the French man. I would imagine that this painting would be placed somewhere casual like a pizza shop in New York or a library, it doesn't give intense feelings of emotion but rather relaxed and offhand vibes. 

Street Scene Chicago, by Archibald Motley, 1936, oil on canvas, Chicago

Subject Matter and Connection 

Motley illustrates a street filled with African Americans dancing and playing the trumpet. One white woman joins them and dances in the street, while on the sidewalk two more white women pass through the scene giving a side-eye look towards the black people, and in the bottom of the painting a white police officer looks sly as he also passes through the crowd. Although times were changing and African Americans were gradually being accepted amongst the whites, Street Scene Chicago represents the very present aspects of racism and segregation during the early 20th century. The illustration of people playing trumpets and the one white woman dancing amongst the blacks represents that music and the Harlem renaissance could unite the black and whites. 

Art Elements and Appreciation

Tone is used to provide a contrast between the darkness of the night and the brightness of the lively street scene, which color plays a part in as well. Motley used dark blue to portray the night sky and bright orange and red to show the evening lights amongst the street. The dark blue and bright orange and red provide the dramatic contrast of the street and the dark buildings and sky. Shape is present in many areas of the paintings, such as the pentagon and rectangle shapes of the street buildings, the shape of the trumpets, and the square windows on the buildings. 

What I like most about Street Scene Chicago is the contrast between light and dark because that's what initially caught my eye about it. I also enjoy how alive the artist portrayed the the people in the art to be, and the warm colors used give a happy feeling. How the Motley portrayed the hardships of African American life in the early 20th century is really eye opening and the level of truth within the artwork also sparked my interest. Where I would imagine this painting would be placed is either in a museum of Chicago history or maybe replicated as a mural somewhere in Chicago. It has a joyful feeling because of the people enjoying themselves in the street, but also a more serious feeling due to the strong contrast and the relevancy to racism. 

“A New African American Identity: The Harlem Renaissance.” National Museum of African American History and Culture, 14 Mar. 2018, “A New African American Identity: The Harlem Renaissance.” National Museum of African American History and Culture, 14 Mar. 2018, https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/new-african-american-identity-harlem-renaissance.

Johnston, Jessica. “Music from the Harlem Renaissance.” An Archive for Virtual Harlem, 29 Apr. 2015, https://scalar.usc.edu/works/harlem-renaissance/music-from-the-harlem-renaissance. 

Ruud, Brandon By Brandon. “Loïs Mailou Jones and ‘The Ascent of Ethiopia.’” Milwaukee Art Museum Blog, 5 Aug. 2021, https://blog.mam.org/2020/07/13/lois-mailou-jones-and-the-ascent-of-ethiopia/.