Jacob Lawrence, Panel 1 from the Migration Series, 1940-1941
New York City has always attracted avant-garde artists.
Harlem became a destination for African Americans of all backgrounds.
When he was a child, his parents divorced.
Jacob Lawrence, Panel 1 from the “Migration Series,” 1940-1941
At this time, the Harlem Renaissance was in full swing.
Most importantly, his creative side was supported by his surroundings.
he said, I got ideas from them, the arabesques, the movement and so on.)
Jacob Lawrence, Panel 3 from the “Migration Series,” 1940-1941
and the African American hub he called home.
The community [in Harlem] let me develop, he reflected.
I painted the only way I knew how to paint .
Carl Van Vechten, “Portrait of Jacob Lawrence,” 1941 (Photo:Wikimedia CommonsPublic Domain)
I tried to put the images down the way I related to the community.
After the success ofThe Migration Series, Lawrence launched a career as a teacher.
He worked at several universities, including the University of Washington, where he taught for sixteen years.
To me, migration means movement, Lawrence said.
There was conflict and struggle.
But out of the struggle came a kind of power and even beauty.
Jacob Lawrence, Panel 40 (“Great Numbers”) from the “Migration Series,” 1940-1941
And the migrants kept coming' is a refrain of triumph over adversity.
If it rings true for you today, then it must still strike a chord in our American experience.
Art dealer Terry Dintenfass with Jacob and Gwendolyn Lawrence, ca 1970 (Photo:Wikimedia CommonsPublic Domain)
