Art and culture of the African Renaissance

Analysis of African American Art in Survey Text

In the survey text, ArtForms, by Duane and Sarah Preble, there is a category of African Art listed in the index yet no reference to African American Art or artists. However, in the chapter labeled Late Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries, there are two African American Artists listed in a small section of the text. Thomas Eakins and Henry Ossawa Tanner are documented for their use of realism, light, and color. Eakins is referred to as one of “great respect for the beauty of the ordinary human being.” He is further noted as a Realist, while Tanner is stated as, “the best-noted African American painter before the Twentieth Century.” No historical data is shown on Thomas Eakins and in contrast, Tanner is granted a small biographical summary beginning with his studying under Akins and ending with his move to France. One finds this quite disturbing as this chapter covers artists and artwork during the time of the Harlem Renaissance yet only includes two artists one of which contributed to the movement. In addition, as one is searching through the pages of the survey text, one finds many references to African Art and artists, yet few to African American artists and a

Furthermore, as one opens the first chapter of the book titled The Nature of Art, the reader is confronted with the complete biographical history of Romare Bearden. The chapter groups Bearden with Rembrandt by noting both artists’ concern for their “effectiveness of their communication to others and their own inner needs of expression”. One wonders why Bearden was placed within the first chapter of this book and not in a later chapter such as Late Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries or Early Twentieth Century. Though, grouping Bearden with Rembrandt allows the reader to place both artists’ within the same level of respect due to Rembrandts notoriety, the reader might be able to understand Bearden’s art fully if it was placed in a chapter where the cultural and social context of the time period were defined.

Moreover, more prominent artists’ such as Georgia O’Keefe are referred to only in passing when describing awareness, creativity, and visual elements. In addition, artists’ such as Faith Ringgold, receive full biographical information and complete definition of their work. For instance, they note Ringgold’s association with Romare Bearden in Harlem and define her themes found in her quilts in correlation with her life experiences. In contrast, many noteworthy African American artists including those who had major contributions within the Harlem Renaissance are not mentioned throughout this text. This does not provide a well rounded introduction to the history of art nor allow for full appreciation of the arts due to the lack of information regarding African American artists and the art throughout this book.