Art of the Harlem Renaissance

Question: Which painter is best known for his depictions of black social life and jazz culture in vibrant city scenes?

Answer: A Guggenheim fellowship took Motley to Paris for a year, where he painted some of his best-known works showing Parisian nightlife.

Question: Which too-little-known sculptor examined issues of race and class in her portrait busts and other works?

Answer: May Howard Jackson never traveled to Europe for training, as many of her African American contemporaries had, but pursued her own vision.

Question: Which painter, known for landscapes and biblical themes, was an inspiration to many young artists associated with the Harlem Renaissance?

Answer: Henry Ossawa Tanner was made a chevalier of the Legion of Honor by the French government in 1923.

Question: Which photographer created some of the most memorable images of the Harlem Renaissance?

Answer: James VanDerZee, who was one of the most successful photographers of the era, was not recognized by the greater art world until the late 1960s.

Question: Which of the following is NOT a chief characteristic of the art of the Harlem Renaissance?

Answer: The art of the Harlem Renaissance did not focus mainly on landscape and biblical subjects.

Question: Which sculptor is known for the poignant portrait bust Gamin (1929)?

Answer: Gamin is one of a limited number of extant sculptures by Augusta Savage, many of whose works were lost or destroyed.

Question: Which sculptor impressed Auguste Rodin and anticipated the Harlem Renaissance with Ethiopia Awakening (1914)?

Answer: Meta Warrick Fuller went to Paris in 1899 and met Rodin a few years later.

Question: Which medium was artist Hale Woodruff’s specialty?

Answer: Among his other paintings, Hale Woodruff made three noted mural series.

Question: Who painted a series of murals collectively titled Aspects of Negro Life?

Answer: Aaron Douglas painted the series for the 135th Street Branch of the New York Public Library.

Question: Which painter was influenced by African design elements as well as abstraction?

Answer: Lois Mailou Jones mastered several styles, including traditional landscapes, but later in her career abstraction and African design elements began to dominate her work.