Romare Bearden

Romare Bearden was born in 1911 in Charlotte, North Carolina and died in 1988. Considered the finest collagist of our time, his works of genius can be found in the permanent collections of museums throughout the country. While still in his youth, his family migrated north in order to escape the racist Jim Crow laws that kept African-Americans from the historic promise of life, liberty and happiness.

The Beardens moved to New York during the height of the Harlem Renaissance. His memories of Charlotte, New York, as well a times spent in Pittsburgh, form the backdrop of images of trains moving north, rural customs of Black America, landscapes and jazz that are composed in a kaleidoscope of paper collage and prints. Bearden frequently transformed biblical events, as well as customs of other ancient cultures, into the modern Black ethos.