
Romare Bearden, Mother and Child (from Conspiracy: The Artist as Witness), 1971
Romare BeardenRomare Bearden (1911-1988) was an African-American artist born in North Carolina, before relocating as a young child to New York City. In New York, his home became a meeting place for major figures of the Harlem Renaissance such as Charles Alston, W.E.B. Dubois, Duke Ellington, and Langston Hughes. He graduated from New York University in 1935, and studied with George Grosz at the Art Students League in 1936 and 1937. After helping to found an artists’ group in support of civil rights, Bearden's work became more representational and more overtly socially conscious, reflecting the spirit and conscience of African-Americans during this crucial era in American history. It was during that era - considered the most desirable in terms of Bearden's oeuvre, that he created this iconic print Mother and Child, for The Center for Constitutional Rights.
The present work was created for the legendary portfolio Conspiracy: the Artist as Witness, to raise money for the legal defense of the Chicago 7, a group of anti-Vietnam War activists indicted by President Nixon's Attorney General John Mitchell for conspiring to riot during the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Conspiracy The Artist as Witnessfeatured works by Jack Beal, Romare Bearden Leon Golub-Nancy Spero, Sol Lewitt, Robert Morris, Claes Oldenburg, Larry Poons, Bridget Riley, Peter Saul, Raphael Soyer and Frank Stella.
This work is in fine condition; a superb, bright impression, and is unframed.