Story Art – Jacob Lawrence Presentation modified and prepared by Alice Finch 2012 2nd Grade Art Project West Mercer Elementary Art Enrichment Program

Today’s Project- Story Art  Part 1 Jacob Lawrence The Great Migration Pencil, crayon, paint Part 2 Captions Mount paintings on black posterboard Jacob Lawrence was an African American painter whose work focused on African American history and contemporary life in the United States. Lawrence is noted for his narrative painting style; he loved using art to tell stories. While he did create visual narratives about historically important African Americans, he also depicted the life and struggles of “everyday” individuals. In 1941, he painted a series of 60 pictures depicting the history of the mass migration of African Americans from the rural South to the urban North. He showed how African American families lived in the South before moving North. He told of their hopes and struggles during their journey, and depicted what happened when they reached the North. You can use the map to show where they lived in the South and where they moved to in the North. Inform the students of Lawrence’s connection to Seattle. He moved to Seattle in 1970 to teach art at the University of Washington and made this area his permanent home. His work is displayed at local museums and public buildings. He died in Seattle in 2000. Migrate means to extend a "habitat gradually from an old into a new region" and "to move from one country, place, or locality to another."

Jacob Lawrence Born in 1917 in New Jersey His parents moved from the south to make a better life In New York, he learned about African American history and art Gained a reputation as a history painter Commissioned to paint the Great Migration series Taught art at the University of Washington

Events leading to the Great Migration-1 In the south, much of the land is rural farmland After slavery was abolished, many slaves stayed to work the land The were not paid well and so were too poor to own land 

Events leading to the Great Migration-2 Pests and floods ruined crops Panel 9: “They left because the boll weevil had ravaged the cotton crop.” Children worked in the fields with their parents Panel 24: “The children were forced to work in the fields. They could not go to school.”

Events leading to the Great Migration-3 In the south, they experienced discrimination Panel 14: “For African Americans there was no justice in the southern courts.” Panel 19: “There had always been discrimination.” In addition to living in poverty, African Americans were discriminated against in the South. Not only were they not able to vote, they were also not able to: use the same water fountains, eat in the same restaurants, or ride in the same train cars as white people. Even worse, many African Americans were beaten, arrested, and sometimes killed by white people in the South.

Events leading to the Great Migration-4 World War I changed industry in the north Many white men went off to war making a shortage of workers Industrial production increased Panel 1: "During the World War there was a great migration North by Southern Negroes." (1940-41)

The Great Migration

The Great Migration- 1 1 million African Americans moved north  They moved mostly to Chicago, Detroit, New York City, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Columbus Panel 36: “Migrants arrived in Chicago, the gateway to the west.” Panel 45: "They arrived in Pittsburgh, one of the great industrial centers of the North, in large numbers."

Great Migration- 2 Moving to the north did improve their lives Voting, education, empowerment, and community Panel 58: “In the north, the African American had more educational opportunities.” Panel 59: “In the north, they had the freedom to vote.”

Life in the north also had its challenges The Great Migration- 3 Life in the north also had its challenges Housing became scarce Discrimination Panel 49: “They found discrimination in the north. It was a different kind.” However, there were several realities to the migration that the African Americans did not anticipate, and that did not coincide with their expectations of life in the North: 1) finding a place to live became increasingly difficult as whites worked to restrict newly arrived African Americans to existing black neighborhoods that were already saturated with prior migrants (this led to overcrowding, disease and an increase in crime); 2) discrimination in the North did exist, although it was rooted in custom, rather than law, and 3) African Americans still experienced discrimination in employment: they were relegated to unskilled or semiskilled (and thus, lower paying) positions.

The Migration Series 60 paintings done all at the same time, color by color Paintings numbered and with captions to tell a story Style called expressive cubism Panel 3: “ From every southern town, migrants left by the hundreds to travel north.”

Story Art Whose story is he telling? How does he show the people? How does he show objects? Panel 31: “Migrants found improved housing when they arrived north.” Panel 60: “And the migrants kept coming.”

What kinds of colors does he use? Panel 5: “Migrants were advanced passage on the railroads, paid for by northern industries.” Panel 39: “ Railroad platforms were piled high with luggage.”

Read a book

Step 1- Choose scenes Tell a story of migration by choosing 2 different scenes Life in the South Journey north Life in the north Scenes should include people (one, a family, or more) Simple shapes (a person can be a circle and rectangles) Big shapes (no fine details)

Step 2- sketch Sketch 2 scenes on scratch paper Divide paper in half South scene on top North scene on bottom

Step 3- Tempera paint Lawrence used only simple, bright colors Black, white, brown Red, blue, yellow, green Do not mix colors 1 brush per color Paint windows first, then the buildings

Step 4- Watercolor paper Names on the back Paper in landscape orientation 1 paper for south scene 1 paper for north scene Draw scenes in pencil Trace in black crayon

Part 2 -Step 5- Captions 2 yellow strips Write names on back in pencil Write simple sentences to describe your scenes Get ok from a parent Trace in sharpie pen

Step 6 – Mounting on posterboard Use glue stick to mount the paintings and captions Place them on the poster board to make sure they all fit Then glue them down Put your name on the back of the black