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The Migration of the Negro, panel 1, 1940-41. Casein tempera on hardboard, 12 x 18 in. (30.5 x 45.7 cm). The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C.
Artwork © Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence, courtesy of the Jacob and Gwendolyn Lawrence Foundation
INFO
After Reconstruction ended in 1876, the quality of life for Southern blacks drastically deteriorated. States adopted "Jim Crow" laws restricting the voting rights of African Americans and requiring them to use separate public facilities. The Ku Klux Klan and other groups terrorized blacks, forcing them to live in fear of violence and lynching. Education facilities were poor and work opportunities were limited. Economic problems included boll weevil infestation of the cotton crops, land erosion brought on by floods and drought, and a decline of cotton prices.
At this same time, the North was experiencing an economic boom. In the early 1900s, northern mines and railroad businesses began to prosper, increasing the demand for unskilled labor. Although European immigrants initially filled these positions, during World War I, northern industries turned to southern blacks as a source of cheap labor. Thousands of blacks left the South in response to promises of a better life and opportunities in the North. The majority of migrants traveled north by rail.
This painting is the first one that Jacob Lawrence made about migration. It shows a crowd of migrants about to embark on journeys to three big cities. Lawrence painted the migrants without facial features. Using a limited palette, Lawrence defined their clothing, hats, and luggage as silhouetted shapes, enhancing a sense of collective action as the crowd surges toward the station.
IMMIGRATION
Going from one's native land to a country in order to settle there permanently.
MIGRATION
Moving from one country, region, or place to settle in another.
LOOK
Where do you think these people are?
Why do you think they are leaving?
When is this migration taking place?
What do you suppose happens in the next picture?
What kinds of events or conditions make people decide to migrate or immigrate?
EXPLORE
• Go to http://www.jacoblawrence.org/art04.html, scroll down to the "series" box and select The Migration Series from the pull down menu. Click on SUBMIT. Look at all of the train scenes in the Migration Series.
What similarities can you find?
What different points of view has Lawrence depicted?
Compare the different ways Lawrence has used color, shape, luggage, hats, the train, and the train tracks in the Migration Series.
• Imagine that you are a migrant about to go on a journey to settle in a new place.
How will you get there?
What will you take with you?
Make a list of things you would pack in a suitcase.
Print out the suitcase drawing (from the link on the previous page) and draw your belongings inside. Draw your belongings as silhouette shapes.
Next, design a label for the outside of your suitcase. Write the name of the place where you are going on the label. Cut out the label and use a glue stick to attach it to your suitcase.
