The Harlem Renaissance

     The African American cultural movement throughout the 1920`s and early 1930`s took place in the center neighborhood, Harlem or New York City. The movement began towards the end of WWI (1918), but truley blossomed in the mid 1920`s. The Harlem Renaissance was said to be the first time publishers and critics acknowledged African American Literature and took it seriously. Though the Renaissance was primarily about  literature it was also linked closely to music,theatre,art and politics.

     During the Renaissance thousands of black Americans moved from the South up to the North to take advantage of the the job opportunities, thus they settled in the City of Harlem. Harlem soon became the center of politics and cultural for blacks. African literature began a steady movement as well as art (theatre,music) Influential artists of this time featured ; J. Rosamon Johnson and Bob Cole. Jazz & Blues soon made its way to the Bars of Harlem. In the Literature world Poet, Paul Laurence Dunbar and fictional writer, Charles W. Chestnutt recieved national recognition for their work. Claud McKay wrote literature describing the life of black Americans and their struggles against prejudice and racial identity.

     There wasn't any certain type of literature that was written during Harlem's Renaissance, but it focused on the roots of African Americans, The American South, and strong racial pride as well as equality among all races. More than 50 volumes of Poetry and Novels were published by black writers. Langston Hughes (poet) published poems of a ghetto life like, The Weary Blues. On the other side Poets like McKay published poems describing the glitz & glamour that may have gone along with living in Harlem.

     The downfall of Harlem's Renaissance in the 1930`s was caused primarily by the Great Depression which had put pressure on everyone. Groups that once supported the Renaissance had shifted their prioritys to social issues and economic issues they were faced with in the '30s. Riots in Harlem during the depression caused it to suffer. Although the Renaissance was later declined it set a pathway for more writers to write about the roots and encourage black culture for years to come.

JAZZ

     New York City, NY has been a place with vibrant, diverse cultures since colonial times and was a very important place in the 1920s. It was the jazz capital of the world. Jazz was the thriving music of the time. People started hearing names like Paul Whiteman, Duke Ellington, Fletcher Henderson and the most famous Louis Armstrong.

Duke Ellington         Louis Armstrong        Fletcher Henderson      Paul Whiteman

     New York City was always the place where famous actors, singers, and performers all blossomed their careers there. With all of the most famous places such as Broadway (known for its actors), Savoy Ballroom (known for its wild, new, and inventive dances), and one of the most famous clubs in NYC history; the Cotton Club (known for having famous musicians play there). The Cotton Club and the Savoy Ballroom were located in the place that thrived with African American culture, Harlem, NY. Harlem was so famous for its talented people, that many record companies brought their headquarters over to Manhattan which is only a sub ride away from the Harlem night lights. One of jazz's famous pioneers, Duke Ellington once said, "Harlem in our minds [was] the world's most glamorous atmosphere. We had to go there."

Savoy Club

Cotton Club

     Jazz was "the new kid on the block" musically speaking; it was the new kind of hip music that everyone who was anyone liked and listened to. Jazz consisted of fast, wild songs and also slower, more in-depth themed songs. There where a few major styles of jazz but the ones most favored by New Yorkers seemed to be swing jazz, bebop, and free jazz style. Jazz was so well received by the world because it was a unique way of expressing the artists or singers feelings/opinions. Most jazz singers and their audiences during the time when it was just made, were African American. This is because of they shared a personal connection with the themes of the music.

Art Deco

Art Deco was a popular international design movement from 1925 until 1939, affecting the decorative arts such as archetecture, interior desighn  as well as the visual artssuch as painting and fasion, the graphic arts and film. It mimicked the fast paced and quickly expanding mechanical age that was happining all over the world

Archetecture

New york City is home to various famous buildings utilizing the classic art/arcetectiual style called art deco. this entrance to an apartment as well as the chrysler building and the city hall builing in buffalo. It was a buetiful style with exqiusite attention to detail. The main materials used were rought iron and copper.

                                                                                                                                  Art

Paintings such as the one below were comon styles of the time period. However statues were all the craze back in this time period. The statue that can be found at rockefeller center is a perfect example of this art style.Even thought there was a good amount of art, architecture and sculpture are easier to recognize than other forms of Art Deco, for they experienced the greatest popularity and with greater longevity than others, such as lacquering, glass work, and industrial design.