Growing up in the South, studies in Paris , the Harlem Renaissance -- these and the whole American experience are the stuff of Romare Bearden's art. Known for his paintings and collages, Bearden (1914-1988) also produced a great variety of prints. Fifty of these, from the Bearden Foundation and other private collections, are on display at the Arthur Ross Gallery through Oct. 24. A part of the exhibition will be displayed concurrently at Philadelphia's Brandywine Workshop.

"Bearden's life and work reflect the influences he grew up in the United States and those he sought out in Europe," said Dilys Winegrad, director of the Arthur Ross Gallery. "Bearden was equally familiar with life in the rural American South and cosmopolitan Paris, where he associated with artists such as Brancusi and Braque. He was influenced by the Bible and Greek mythology and created vivid images of life in rural America and the Caribbean that arouse a sense of their own myth and mystery."

Born in Mecklenburg, N.C., in 1912, Bearden commemorated life through art, depicting the rituals, customs and cycles essential to it in 20th-century America. In his works Bearden reconstructs his life's history and the African-American experience.

"One sees in Bearden's work a recurrent set of themes," said Herman Beavers, associate professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania and director of its Afro-American Studies Program, "that have ... to do with ... how does one create and maintain structure in the face of soul-killing forces like discrimination, segregation and violence; ritual, music and family, therefore become instruments that provide a way for Bearden."

In his youth Bearden studied at the Art Students League in Harlem. His mother, Bessye Bearden, was an activist, and family friends included W.E.B. DuBois and Paul Robeson, and painters Aaron Douglas and Charles Alston. In 1950, he traveled to Paris and while in Europe, visited museums and mingled with artists, poets and, perhaps most importantly, musicians. For a period after his return, he abandoned painting to try his hand as a songwriter.

As a visual artist, Bearden started out as a Social Realist and depicted the human figure and the human condition. He later experimented with abstract expressionism. During the civil rights movement, in association with other African-American artists, he reassessed his style as well as his artistic responsibilities. He spent years as a social worker in Harlem encouraging young black artists. Turning to collage and the use of photographic enlargements of popular-media reproductions, he was invited to present his first solo show at the Corcoran Gallery in Washington D.C. , in 1964.

For Bearden, printmaking was an important medium that comple-mented his paintings and collages and provided an outlet for experimentation as well as a new approach to broadening his audience.

In conjunction with the exhibition, a symposium on Bearden will take place 3 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 13, at Penn's Annenberg School for Communication, 3620 Walnut St., Room 110.

The symposium brings together leading scholars to discuss "The Life and Work of Romare Bearden," and celebrate the African-American tradition in the visual arts. The keynote address will be delivered by Dr. David Driskell, distinguished university professor of art, University of Maryland-College Park. Beavers will make the opening remarks and the panel includes Dr. Elizabeth Alexander, assistant professor of English, University of Chicago ; Dr. Sharon Patton, associate professor of art history and director of the Center for African American Studies, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor; and Dr. Paul Rogers, assistant professor of art history, University of Chicago. A reception at the Arthur Ross Gallery follows the symposium. Both events are free and open to the public. Those interested in attending the symposium should call the gallery at (215) 898-2083.

This traveling exhibition was curated by Gail Gelburd and Alex Rosenberg. Its presentation at the Arthur Ross Gallery is dedicated to the memory of the artist's widow, Nanette Rohan Bearden, who died this summer. An accompanying catalogue that contains the first comprehensive listing of all of Bearden's graphic works, is distributed by the University of Pennsylvania Press.

Other related events include free jazz performances in the gallery on Sunday, Sept. 22, and a free children's workshop with storyteller Linda Goss at 11 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 28.

Return to Compass Features for September 10, 1996