On View
Not on viewObject number2007.23
Mecklenburg Autumn
Artist
Romare Bearden
(American, 1914-1988)
Date1979
Mediumcolor lithograph
Dimensionsimage: 23 × 18 in. (58.4 × 45.7 cm)
mat: 30 × 24 in. (76.2 × 61 cm)
mat: 30 × 24 in. (76.2 × 61 cm)
Credit LinePermanent Collection Fund
Exhibition History"Embracing Diverse Voices: African-American Art in the Collection of the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts," KIA Galleries 3&4(Oct. 3 - Nov. 29, 2009).
"Embracing Diverse Voices: 80 Years of African-American Art," KIA Traveling Exhibition, Bakersfield Museum of Art (Dec. 13, 2012 – Mar. 10, 2013).
"Embracing Diverse Voices: 90 Years of African-American Art," KIA Traveling Exhibition, Tyler Museum of Art, Tyler, TX (January 17 - March 20, 2016).
"Embracing Diverse Voices: A Century of African-American Art," KIA Traveling Exhibition, North Carolina Central University Art Museum (October 7 - December 12, 2016).
"Resilience: African American Artists as Agents of Change," at the KIA (September 14, 2019 - February 16, 2020)
"Resilience: African American Artists as Agents of Change," [Travel Version] at the Dennos Museum Center, Traverse City, MI (June 6, 2021 - August, 15, 2021)
"Africa, Imagined: Reflections on Modern and Contemporary Art," KIA Gallerys 3 & 4 (January 22 - May 1, 2022)Label Text"Romare Bearden was an African American artist and writer, renowned for his collages and photomontages. Bearden’s dynamic and evocative works put a spotlight on African American lives and experiences during the mid-20th century, bridging the gap between innovation and tradition. Bearden believed his art making process was akin to jazz or blues composers. So, his works are highly energetic and spontaneous. His semi-abstract works feature flattened yet sculptural figures, complex patterns, and bold blocks of color.
In Mecklenburg Autumn, the figure of a woman with a patterned quilt on her lap looms grandly in the foreground. The artist renders the woman’s face as an African mask, giving her a statuesque appearance. Another woman stands beside her, cradling a jumble of fabric. Bearden, a native of North Carolina’s Mecklenburg County, found frequent inspiration in this region and other American locales, the Civil Rights Movement, and African American music. As with many Black artists during the 1960s and ‘70s, African art and culture also influenced his works. Bearden’s contributions to American art went beyond his artworks. He co-founded several groups that advocated for African American artists and civil rights issues, including Spiral, Cinqué Gallery, and the Studio Museum in Harlem." [from the exhibition 'Africa, Imagined,' 2022]
