Romare Bearden

Young Life of Romy Born on September 2, 1911 in Charlotte, NC. Eventually moved to Harlem, NY where his parents were friends with many musicians, poets, and writers. He spent summers and part of his school years with his grandparents in Pittsburgh, PA. There he met a friend, Eugene, who inspired Romy to create, draw, and paint.

Romare Bearden - Visual Jazz Many of Bearden’s works are centered around jazz and music – influences from growing up with musicians visiting his parents’ home. There is a short video clip when you click on the blue underlined Visual Jazz title line.

Memories… Bearden’s artwork is influenced by the places he grew up and lived.

This slide relates to cubism because we study a bit about cubism and the cubists the month prior when working in the drawing studio learning about value, shapes, and 3D forms on a 2D surface. Picasso collage Bearden collage He also tried to portray the African-American race in various points of view – similar to Cubist work & collages.

seen at Crystal Bridges! > “He felt that art portraying the lives of African American’s did not give full value to the individual.… In doing collage he was able to combine abstract art with real images so that people of different cultures could grasp the subject matter of the African American culture: The people. In addition, collage’s technique of gathering several pieces together to create one assembled work symbolizes the coming together of tradition and communities.” Bearden died on March 12, 1988. This work can be seen at Crystal Bridges! > Love this quote. It is important to read and have the students discuss their thoughts. *A note about Crystal Bridges because it is our museum in our community. :)