Any Window, photograph.
The Sweet Flypaper of Life, Roy DeCarava.



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>Literature
>Learning Standards
>Bibliography
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Morrisania Air Rights Towers, S. Bronx, 1980. The New American Ghetto, Camilo
Jose' Vergara.

 



 

 

 

>Art Activity 1

Introducing Students to the Work of Jacob Lawrence:

This art activity concentrates on developing judgements and a historical awarness of Jacob Lawrence and Roy DeCarava. Two LAUSD learning standards are applicable to students' study in this activity.

An historical framework will be helpful to introduce students to the work of Jacob Lawrence. During the Harlem Renaissance, Roy DeCarava and Langston Hughes collaborated on The Sweet Flypaper of Life, a pictorial documentary of Harlem as seen through the eyes of Sister Mary Bradley, a resident of Harlem. Students can compare and contrast this documentary with Jacob Lawrence's The Migration Series of the same period. Through this comparison students will gain a more comprehensive sense of the social and artistic climate of the Harlem Renaissance.

As students become familiar with Harlem of the late 1930s and 40s, they can also make comparisons to contemporary urban spaces. The New American Ghetto,
 a pictorial documentary by Camilo Jose Vergara, is an excellent source for viewing our contemporary urban spaces and their social climates. During this discussion students should learn that the Harlem Renaissance artists possessed a determination that lead to the triumph of creativity during an era of strife and social upheaval.

 

When looking at the paintings of Jacob Lawrence and the photographs of Roy DeCarava, some of the following discussion prompts may be used:

 

  • What are the recurring images of Harlem past found in the paintings of Jacob Lawrence and the photographs of Roy DeCarava? What do these images tell us about Harlem past?

  • Both Jacob Lawrence and Roy DeCarava capture their subjects in the midst of movement to and through Harlem. How do these artists use the city and its movement to comment on their subjects' day to day and emotional lives?

  • If we compare the cityscapes of Jacob Lawrence and Roy DeCarava to the contemporary cityscapes found in Vergara's The New American Ghetto, what are some obvious differences and similarities in the architecture, streets, signs, and human expressions?

 

 

 

 

 

Introduction Art Activity 1 Cont.