The Harlem Renaissance in NYC - Essay Example

A large number of African Americans moved to urban centres such as Chicago, Detroit, and Philadelphia, Washington. They were doing this to escape the oppression faced by them right after World War I and thus it started a cultural movement which later became known as the Harlem Renaissance. The cultural movement was viewed and realized by political activists, artists, musicians, and the cultural elite, all of them having a longer-term vision for the future (Powell).

The painting that I have chosen to discuss is the Jeunesse, made by Palmer Hayden using watercolour. It is the collection of Dr Meredith F Sirmans and it shows the enthusiasm for jazz, which is a musical form developed during the 1920s by African Americans and also inclined towards the European form of art of the harmonic structure and the complex African rhythm culture. Jazz is usually identified by its blue rhythms and distinctive speech annotations (Powell). The painting shows a couple dancing to the jazz song and they seem to be swayed away by the music and are totally into it. The painter could’ve seen this view in Hotel Savoy, many believe as it was a famous jazz club of the time. It talks about the importance of dance in African Americans and how they expressed themselves through this.

The Italian poet Filippo Marinetti is the writer of the futurist manifesto which was a document published in 1909 in the French newspaper Le Figaro and the Italian newspaper Gazzetta dell ‘Emilia. It was an artistic and cultural movement initiated in Italy in the early 20th century and then spread through entire Europe. The major focus of this movement was the trends that would take importance in the coming years such as speed, power, technology, youth empowerment, and violence and all these concepts were explored by various artists through their artworks. The different art forms used by these futuristic artists were sculptures, paintings, and theatre arts such as plays. They were also evident in the daily settings such as the interior design as well as the architecture of the buildings. Futurist movement artists were the first ones to talk about cars, aeroplanes, and industrial cities. They emphasized the significance given to art including literature, and poetry saying that the progress of the world will not hinder the value which is given to arts in the world (Nash).