where did the harlem renaissance begin

What event led to the Harlem Renaissance?

One condition that led to the Harlem Renaissance was the return of black veterans from France at the end of WWI. In general, the French treated African Americans with more respect than white America treated them. Exposure to new cultural experiences in France led many African Americans to be more...

What are facts about the Harlem Renaissance?

Harlem Renaissance was an African American cultural, social and artistic movement which peaked in the 1920s. Centered at the Harlem neighborhood in New York City, the movement spread through the United States and reached as far as Paris. Chiefly caused due to the Great Migration, Harlem Renaissance declined and came to an end during the Great Depression.

What caused the Harlem Renaissance?

The primary and most important factors that contributed to the up rise of the Harlem Renaissance were World War I and the Great Migration. For it was the relocation to Harlem during The Great Migration of African-American people from the egregious oppression of South to the North, that was the cause of this phenomenon.

What came out of the Harlem Renaissance?

harlem renaissance The Harlem renaissance was a literary, artistic, and intellectual explosion of culture in Harlem that kindled a new black cultural identity. Mostly a literary movement, whites were interested with what was going on in Harlem, so many black writers were published, giving a look into what was happening in the lives of the black community during this time.

How did the Harlem Renaissance begin?

One of the factors contributing to the rise of the Harlem Renaissance was the Great Migration of African-Americans to northern cities between 1919 and 1926. The two major causes that fueled the Great Migration were the Jim Crow segregation laws of the south and the start of World War I.

When did the Harlem take place?

The Harlem Renaissance was an African American cultural movement that flourished in the 1920s and had Harlem in New York City as its symbolic capital.

What was the Harlem Renaissance in simple terms?

The Harlem Renaissance was a period of U.S. history marked by a burst of creativity within the African American community in the areas of art, music and literature. Centered within New York City's Harlem, the Harlem Renaissance began roughly with the end of World War I in 1918 and continued into the mid-1930s.

Where did the Harlem Renaissance take place?

New York CityThe Harlem Renaissance was the development of the Harlem neighborhood in New York City as a Black cultural mecca in the early 20th Century and the subsequent social and artistic explosion that resulted.

Where does Harlem begin and end?

Harlem as a neighbourhood has no fixed boundaries; it may generally be said to lie between 155th Street on the north, the East and Harlem rivers on the east, 96th Street (east of Central Park) and 110th Street and Cathedral Parkway (north and west of Central Park) on the south, and Amsterdam Avenue on the west.

What is another name for the Harlem Renaissance?

The Harlem Renaissance, also known as the New Negro Movement, was a period of great cultural activity and innovation among African American artists and writers, one that saw new artists and landmark works appear in the fields of literature, dance, art, and music.

What impact did the Harlem Renaissance have?

Most importantly, the Harlem Renaissance instilled in African Americans across the country a new spirit of self-determination and pride, a new social consciousness, and a new commitment to political activism, all of which would provide a foundation for the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s.

Who was a major figure of the Harlem Renaissance?

Some of the main figures of the literary Harlem Renaissance were Jean Toomer, Jessie Fauset, Claude McKay, James Weldon Johnson, Alain Locke, Eric D. Walrond , Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes.

Why was Harlem important in the 1920s?

In the 1920s and 1930s, Harlem became a symbol of the African American struggle for civil and economic equality while emerging as a flourishing center of black culture, art and music.

When did Harlem become a slum?

Since the 1920s, this period of Harlem's history has been highly romanticized. With the increase in a poor population, it was also the time when the neighborhood began to deteriorate to a slum, and some of the storied traditions of the Harlem Renaissance were driven by poverty, crime, or other social ills.

What was Harlem like in the 1950s?

Harlem was, and is, a predominantly black neighborhood. In the 1950s Harlem's black population reached its peak numbers at 98 percent. However, the outstanding amount of social and physical change it has witnessed over the past few decades threatens to change the face of Harlem, as we know it.

Why is Harlem named Harlem?

Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands. Harlem's history has been defined by a series of economic boom-and-bust cycles, with significant population shifts accompanying each cycle.

What was the Harlem Renaissance?

The Harlem Renaissance was an African American cultural movement that flourished in the 1920s and had Harlem in New York City as its symbolic capit...

Who were notable people of the Harlem Renaissance?

Key figures included educator, writer, and philosopher Alain Locke, who was considered the movement’s leader; sociologist W.E.B. Du Bois, who helpe...

When did the Harlem Renaissance occur?

The movement is considered to have begun about 1918 and continued to 1937. Its most productive period was in the 1920s, as the movement’s vitality...

Why was the Harlem Renaissance significant?

The Harlem Renaissance was a turning point in Black cultural history. It helped African American writers and artists gain more control over the rep...

What was the Harlem Renaissance?

The Harlem Renaissance was an artistic flowering of the “New Negro” movement as its participants celebrated their African heritage and embraced self-expression , rejecting long-standing—and often degrading—stereotypes. Read more below: Black heritage and American culture. Harlem.

When did people walk in Harlem?

People walking in Harlem, New York City, 1942.

What was the Harlem Renaissance?

The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater and politics centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the time, it was known as the " New Negro Movement ", ...

What was the first stage of the Harlem Renaissance?

The first stage of the Harlem Renaissance started in the late 1910s. In 1917, the premiere of Granny Maumee, The Rider of Dreams, Simon the Cyrenian: Plays for a Negro Theater took place. These plays, written by white playwright Ridgely Torrence, featured African-American actors conveying complex human emotions and yearnings. They rejected the stereotypes of the blackface and minstrel show traditions. James Weldon Johnson in 1917 called the premieres of these plays "the most important single event in the entire history of the Negro in the American Theater".

What did the majority of African Americans do during the reconstruction era?

During the Reconstruction Era, the emancipated African Americans, freedmen, began to strive for civic participation, political equality and economic and cultural self-determination.

What was the Harlem Stride style?

A new way of playing the piano called the Harlem Stride style was created during the Harlem Renaissance, and helped blur the lines between the poor African Americans and socially elite African Americans. The traditional jazz band was composed primarily of brass instruments and was considered a symbol of the south, but the piano was considered an instrument of the wealthy. With this instrumental modification to the existing genre, the wealthy African Americans now had more access to jazz music. Its popularity soon spread throughout the country and was consequently at an all-time high.

What was the role of Christianity in the Harlem Renaissance?

Christianity played a major role in the Harlem Renaissance. Many of the writers and social critics discussed the role of Christianity in African-American lives. For example, a famous poem by Langston Hughes, "Madam and the Minister", reflects the temperature and mood towards religion in the Harlem Renaissance.

How did the Harlem Renaissance impact the African American experience?

The Harlem Renaissance was successful in that it brought the Black experience clearly within the corpus of American cultural history. Not only through an explosion of culture, but on a sociological level, the legacy of the Harlem Renaissance redefined how America, and the world, viewed African Americans. The migration of southern Blacks to the north changed the image of the African American from rural, undereducated peasants to one of urban, cosmopolitan sophistication. This new identity led to a greater social consciousness, and African Americans became players on the world stage, expanding intellectual and social contacts internationally.

When did Harlem become an African American neighborhood?

Harlem became an African-American neighborhood in the early 1900s. In 1910, a large block along 135th Street and Fifth Avenue was bought by various African-American realtors and a church group. Many more African Americans arrived during the First World War.

How did the Harlem Renaissance affect New York City?

During the 1920s, the Harlem Renaissance greatly impacted and diversified New York City. The Harlem Renaissance was a movement during which African American culture drastically flourished, as it developed artistically, socially, and intellectually. Throughout this era, which was also known as the dawn of the “New Negro”, black New Yorkers decided to step against the prior oppression and subordination that they had experienced due to their race, and they gained a sense of unity, integrity, and creativity. [1] By creating new forms of art, music, fashion and literature, black citizens throughout Harlem created and expressed a new sense of cultural and racial pride.

Why did the Harlem Renaissance begin?

The Harlem Renaissance began when thousands of African Americans moved northward to gain more opportunities, and to escape racism and limited rights in the south. In 1917, during the time of World War I, many northern states opened factories to manufacture and provide weapons for American soldiers fighting overseas. Consequently, many black southern citizens moved to the north to work in these factories, many of which were located in New York City. Additionally, real estate companies began to build many new apartment complexes in anticipation of a population boom among white New Yorkers. However, when urban citizens unexpectedly had little interest in moving into Harlem, real estate owners agreed to begin renting their properties to black migrants from the south. This overall mass movement of African Americans from the rural south to the urban north was known as the Great Migration, and was the starting point for the Harlem Renaissance. [2]

What was the most important thing that African Americans did during the Harlem Renaissance?

During the Harlem Renaissance, African Americans uplifted their culture through new art. This was the first time that they truly embraced creativity. Black artists expressed themselves, their interests, and the greatness of their race by creating new sculptures and paintings. In particular, one form of art that was widely practiced during this era, known as cubism, was introduced to African Americans by Aaron Douglas, who was an extremely talented black artist. This two-dimensional artistic technique, which was commonly characterized by fragmented subjects and bright, bold colors, was a strong representation of African American culture during the 1920s. Although many of the black residents of New York City were previously slaves and had experienced significant oppression and brokenness in the past, they came together to intentionally create a better life for themselves in Harlem. Additionally, the bold and vivid colors used in cubism represented the vibrancy and excitement of African American culture. Cubism truly reflected the identity of African Americans during the 1920s. Aside from painting, sculpting emerged as popular artistic method. Many sculptors and painters chose Egyptians to be the subject of their masterpieces, reflecting and honoring their ancestral African roots. Overall, the new and unique creation of art by black New Yorkers added a splash of color to African American culture all throughout Harlem, and proved the potential of black artists. [4] Today, the Studio Museum in Harlem displays a variety of both local and international art that has been inspired by African American culture, and reflects the creativity of the Renaissance era.

How did the Black New Yorkers in Harlem recreate their identity?

Black New Yorkers in Harlem recreated their identity through literature as well. Perhaps it was through this literature that African Americans portrayed their determination to gain rights and respect most clearly. Through their art and music, they displayed the innovation and creativity of their unique culture.

Why did black people come to Harlem?

Due to the high quantity and close proximity of black New Yorkers living in Harlem, these citizens were able to bond over their race and culture together. After discovering that the majority of their fellow neighbors had also shared common past experiences of hardship in the south, African Americans sought to unite themselves by creating a better life in Harlem. [3] They sought to end stereotypes, build a respectable reputation for themselves, and create a lasting legacy of racial pride for generations to come. Black Harlem residents began to redefine themselves and portray their potential through their art, music, and literature.

What is the Studio Museum in Harlem?

Today, the Studio Museum in Harlem displays a variety of both local and international art that has been inspired by African American culture, and reflects the creativity of the Renaissance era. African American culture was further defined and improved by musicians during this era. In particular, jazz music was an iconic category ...

How did jazz help African Americans?

Jazz musicians truly helped to bring respect and greatness to African American culture . Not only did they gain they recognition and renown from all over the urban area, but they developed a way to creatively express themselves in a way that no other culture had done before. Through jazz music, African Americans in Harlem truly redefined themselves. [5] The National Jazz Museum in Harlem, which is affiliated with the Smithsonian, is a highlight for New York visitors today, as it continues to preserve and celebrate jazz traditions in the twenty-first century. Although the Renaissance itself ceases to exist today, this musical museum continues to add an artistic and lively touch to the urban environment of Harlem.

What was the Harlem Renaissance?

The Harlem Renaissance. was born out of necessity, circumstance, and creativity. As one of the most influential movements in African-American history, The Harlem Renaissance strengthened the foundation of what we have come to know as “the culture.”.

What was the purpose of the Black Upper Class?

A Black Upper Class emerged and with it came a mission to document the experience of African-American’s like never before, and provide space for the work of a Black creative Class —this was especially true in Harlem.

Who was the first editor-in-chief of the National Urban Leagues?

Charles S. Johnson, the first editor-in-chief of the National Urban Leagues’ academic journal, captured Black culture and provided opportunities for new artists. Alain LeRoy Locke and The New Negro anthologized African and African-American art and literature, while simultaneously providing a manifesto for the New Negro Movement ...

Was the Harlem Renaissance bigger than the Harlem district?

The Harlem Renaissance was bigger than the Harlem district in New York City. A lot happened between the years of 1918 and 1937, and for every inch gained in Harlem, a mile was being traveled by Black people elsewhere in America to escape disenfranchisement and Jim Crow laws.

Where did the Harlem Renaissance take place?

Situating the Harlem Renaissance in space is almost as complex as defining its origins and time span. Certainly Harlem is central to the Harlem Renaissance, but it serves more as an anchor for the movement than as its sole location. In reality, the Harlem Renaissance both drew from and spread its influence across the United States, the Caribbean, and the world. Only a handful of the writers, artists, musicians, and other figures of the Harlem Renaissance were native to Harlem or New York, and only a relatively small number lived in Harlem throughout the Renaissance period. And yet, Harlem impacted the art, music, and writing of virtually all of the participants in the Harlem Renaissance.

How is the Harlem Renaissance viewed?

The Harlem Renaissance is increasingly viewed through a broader lens that recognizes it as a national movement with connections to international developments in art and culture that places increasing emphasis on the non-literary aspects of the movement.

What was the name of the musical that was performed in the Harlem Renaissance?

For those who viewed the Harlem Renaissance in terms of musical theater and entertainment, the birth occurred three years earlier when Shuffle Along opened at the 63rd Street Musical Hall. Shuffle Along was a musical play written by a pair of veteran Vaudeville acts—comedians Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles, and composers/singers Eubie Blake and Noble Sissle. Most of its cast featured unknowns, but some, like Josephine Baker and Paul Robeson, who had only minor roles in the production, were on their way to international fame. Eubie Blake recalled the significance of the production, when he pointed out that he and Sissle and Lyles and Miller accomplished something that the other great African American performers—Bob Cole and J. Rosamund Johnson, Bert Williams and George Walker—had tried, but failed to achieve. "We did it, that's the story," he exclaimed, " We put Negroes back on Broadway!" 4

What was the music of the Harlem Renaissance?

Music was also a prominent feature of African American culture during the Harlem Renaissance. The term "Jazz Age" was used by many who saw African American music, especially the blues and jazz, as the defining features of the Renaissance. However, both jazz and the blues were imports to Harlem. They emerged out of the African American experience around the turn of the century in southern towns and cities, like New Orleans, Memphis, and St. Louis. From these origins these musical forms spread across the country, north to Chicago before arriving in New York a few years before World War I.

Why did realtors take advantage of declining property values in Harlem?

Both black and white realtors took advantage of declining property values in Harlem—the panic selling that resulted when blacks moved in. Addressing the demand for housing generated by the city's rapidly growing black population, they acquired, subdivided, and leased Harlem property to black tenants.

What is the Negro American?

The Negro American was a Harlem Renaissance era magazine published in San Antonio, Texas, that declared itself to be "the only magazine in the South devoted to Negro life and culture.". This particular issue includes a review of Rudolph Fisher's novel The Walls of Jericho (page 13). Courtesy of Michael L. Gillette.

Where was the 135th Street branch of the New York Public Library?

Within thirty seconds walk of the 135th Street Branch (New York Public Library), Harlem , 1919. Photo by F. F. Hopper. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, New York Public Library.

Overview

Background

Development

Characteristics and themes

Influence

Works associated with the Harlem Renaissance

See also

External links