Often referred to as a “Harlem Renaissance painter”, Aaron Douglas (May 1898 – February 1979) spent his early years in Topeka, Kansas and moved to NYC in 1925.
Douglas worked with flat forms and hard edges. “In paintings, murals, and book illustrations, he incorporated elements from music, dance, literature, and politics to produce powerful artistic forms that had a lasting impact on American art history and the nation’s cultural heritage”
“Aaron Douglas: African American Modernist” refers to his four 1930’s murals from the Schomburg’s Reading Room.
BTW: The Schomburg Library was the vision of Arturo Alfonso Schomburg. Of African/ Puerto Rican descent, he recognized the need to consolidate the culture, history, and art of people of color. His collection was absorbed into the New York Public Library system after his death in 1938. It became a part of the “Division of Negro History” at the 135th Street Branch.
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY
Image: “Into Bondage”, Aaron Douglas, 1936 (oil on canvas)