Harlem Renaissance
Exploring questions and struggles for African Americans in the 1920's.
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Aaron Douglas (1899-1979)
Aaron Douglas (1898-1979) was the Harlem Renaissance artist whose work explored questions of identity and progress for African Americans. He painted murals for public buildings and produced illustrations and cover designs for many black publications including The Crisis and Opportunity. In 1940 he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he founded the art department at Fisk University and taught for twenty nine years.
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Lois Mailou Jones (1905-1998)
Lois Jones attended the School of Museum of Fine Art, Boston, during a time of strong discrimination against African Americans. She entered her works into exhibitions that did not recognize African American artists by having her white friends deliver the paintings. In other cases, prizes awarded to her were taken away and given to her white competitors. Despite these challenges Jones prevailed as an artist.
Jacob Lawrence (1917-2000)
Jacob Lawrence was the first mainstream African American artist. His success began at the age of 24, and lasted until he died, in 2000. Lawrence is best known for his "Migration" series or paintings, showing the migration of Blacks from Africa to the United States. This series focuses mainly on their history in the south. Throughout his life, he won many awards and received considerable recognition for his works.