Harlem Renaissance: Art of Black America

by Mary Schmidt Campbell

A book which brings together the work of Black artists in the USA, who came to prominence in the 1920s. The visual artists of the Harlem Renaissance made their own contributions to the excitement of Black America's great cultural awakening.

Genres: Art, History, Nonfiction, African American

Hardcover

First published March 31, 1987

About the author

Mary Schmidt Campbell is President of Spelman College and Dean Emerita of the Tisch School of the Arts. She served as the vice chair of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities under former President Barack Obama.

Reviews

[Angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of my favorite art books ...ever.

[Nascha · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful book!! It is a great encyclopedia of black art and the artists' who made them during the Harlem Renaissance and after. I learned so much about artists from this period, which happens to be one of my favorite historical periods. I also learned about the backstory from some of the art that I have seen on the covers of books or in libraries and museums and the artist that created them. For many, I was familiar with their work but not the artist themselves.

For example, there is a series of art in the Schomburg Library here in Harlem that were done by the artist Aaron Douglas. I have seen the murals he painted in that library many times but I did not know much about the artist himself. I was glad to learn more about him and his life and work. Another artist I was excited to learn more about was, Archibald Motley Jr. His famous paintings can be found in major museums here in New York City and Chicago, where he was from, but if I had not read this book I would not know much about him.

Those are just some examples of artists that were featured in this book. I highly recommend it for students and fans of the period and lovers of black art.

[Nascha · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful book!! It is a great encyclopedia of black art and the artists' who made them during the Harlem Renaissance and after. I learned so much about artists from this period, which happens to be one of my favorite historical periods. I also learned about the backstory from some of the art that I have seen on the covers of books or in libraries and museums and the artist that created them. For many, I was familiar with their work but not the artist themselves.

For example, there is a series of art in the Schomburg Library here in Harlem that were done by the artist Aaron Douglas. I have seen the murals he painted in that library many times but I did not know much about the artist himself. I was glad to learn more about him and his life and work. Another artist I was excited to learn more about was, Archibald Motley Jr. His famous paintings can be found in major museums here in New York City and Chicago, where he was from, but if I had not read this book I would not know much about him.

Those are just some examples of artists that were featured in this book. I highly recommend it for students and fans of the period and lovers of black art.

[Jlea Jensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got an Incredible education reading this book. I think I may actually purchase it.

[Nicole Eddy-Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great history book & encyclopedia of Black Art. I didn’t expect the book to touch on writers & photographers of the Harlem Renaissance as well. Love everything about this book.