Romare Bearden and Jacob Lawrence were probably two of the most recognized artists during the Civil Rights Movement. Both men participated in the Black Art movement which occurred in the 1960s. It was "characterized as a realistic or figurative art created by black artists, addressed to black Americans, that communicated a spirit of black pride and solidarity, of power and militancy in the struggle for full right as Americans" (Bearden 310).
Romare Bearden (1914-1988) was best known as a practitioner of the art of contemporary collage, although he began this type of painting late in his career. He is also known for his watercolors and oils. As an outspoken African-American artist, Bearden wrote many articles about black artists and gave many talks on this subject. Almost all of his work reflects historical and cultural truths of African-American lifestyles of the twentieth century. "He continued to create art in which the human image was defined in terms of the African-American experience, presenting African-Americans in a believable reality rather than as abstract, unknown qualities" (Lewis 123). Bearden alsosought to create visual images of many of the contemporary African-American literary works with which he was familiar. "Bearden's art, regardless of media or subject matter has always been of the 'spirit.' It is an art of celebration, one of births and rebirths. It is an art that lives and transcends boundaries" (Lewis 125).
Jacob Lawrence (1917- ) became famous after the publicaton of his critically-hailed masterpiece, "Migration Series," and is now considered one of America's best-known contemporary artists. Much of his work centers around African-American history and culture -- he paints what he is familiar with, including Harlem. Many of his subjects have been street preachers, clinic waiting rooms filled with the sick and the crippled, curbstone checker players, pool hall regulars, and working people. He has also produced many works on famous people including Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass. "The inner rage that motivated Lawrence's powerful yet objective portrayal of African-Americans' lives appeared largely exhausted by 1950. However, the civil rights struggle refueled his rage. Inspired by incidents at Little Rock and elsewhere, Lawrence turned to surrealist fantasy to potray... prejudice" (Bearden xx) and other race-related problems. Following World War II, Lawrence sought to create a positive image of blacks in America by showing them at work: a shoemaker, a seamstress, barbers, carpenters, and cabinetmakers (Bearden 305).
He has become best known for his print-making style of painting in which he applies a certain color to every area in te painting that calls for that color simultaneously, lets those areas dry, then proceeds with the next color. In summing up his artistic talent he said: "My pictures express my life and experience. I paint the things I know about, the things I have experienced. The things I have experienced extend into my natinal, racial, and class group. So I paint the American scene" (Bearden 314). This has helped Jacob Lawrence to become the best-known, most published, and most influential living African American artist in the United States.
Confrontation at the Bridge No. 5 The Legend of John Brown