Aesthetics of Freedom: Arts of the Harlem Renaissance
In this lecture-based course, students will be introduced to the Harlem Renaissance, which is sometimes referred to as the “New Negro Movement,” a period from 1920-1940. Students will be introduced to the major intellectual and social issues of this period in American history. Specifically, students will delve into the works of prominent Harlem Renaissance visual artists and multiple written genres including critical essays, poems, and novels, and artworks. While exploring these visual and literary artists and their work we will probe the impetus behind and meaning and legacy of a period in American history that saw a surge of African American artistic and cultural expressions.