Romare Bearden in the Homeland of His Imagination

by Glenda Elizabeth Gilmore

Romare Bearden (1911–1988), one of the most prolific, original, and acclaimed American artists of the twentieth century, richly depicted scenes and figures rooted in the American South and the Black experience. Bearden hailed from North Carolina but was forced to relocate to the North when a white mob harassed them in the 1910s. His family story is a compelling, complicated saga of Black middle-class achievement in the face of relentless waves of white supremacy. It is also a narrative of the generational trauma that slavery and racism inflicted over decades. But as Glenda Gilmore reveals in this trenchant reappraisal of Bearden’s life and art, his work reveals his deep imagination, extensive training and rich knowledge of art history.

Gilmore explores four generations of Bearden’s family and highlights his experiences in North Carolina, Pittsburgh, and Harlem. She engages deeply with Bearden's art and considers it as an alternative archive that offers a unique perspective on the history, memory, and collective imagination of Black southerners who migrated to the North. In doing so, she revises and deepens our appreciation of Bearden’s place in the artistic canon and our understanding of his relationship to southern, African American, and American cultural and social history.

Glenda Gilmore is the Peter V. and C. Vann Woodward Professor of History Emerita at Yale University.

Genres: History, Art

176 pages, Hardcover

First published May 10, 2022

About the author

Glenda Elizabeth Gilmore is the Peter V. and C. Van Woodward Professor of History, African American Studies, and American Studies at Yale University. She earned her Ph.D. at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Reviews

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a special interest in this book because I knew Romare Bearden's name from his art and his ties to Charlotte, NC. Reading this book I have a great appreciation for the journey the author takes us on. One part biography, one part study of the times, one part art history, and all quite interesting. You need not be from the south, or be an art student to enjoy this biography.

There are multiple audiences for this book and I recommend it as a good read!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advance copy of this book.

[Sue Goldberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Romare Bearden, In the Homeland of His Imagination," is a comprehensive family history as well as a compilation of biographical sketches from numerous sources. It is beautifully illustrated with Bearden's work and art from his contemporaries, along with copious annotation and a huge and thorough bibliography. Clearly, this volume from Glenda Elizabeth Gilmore has been a passion that has taken years to create. Though he is presented as changing his own narrative when it suited, Bearden's passion for history is brought into focus in these pages.

It was very helpful to see Romare Bearden’s paintings alongside those of other artists’ work with whom his has been compared. He was influenced and inspired by many contemporary artists, poets, playwrights and this book is filled with helpful art critique and analysis. In turn, his work inspired others, for example August Wilson’s use of a Bearden painting to create the set for a play. (‘The Mill Hand’s Lunch Bucket’ - “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone”)

The reader will see the Great Migration through the eyes of a child, see racist post-Civil War history through the personal history of a highly trained and skilled artist, from a middle class and well respected family. We read about the Harlem Renaissance, its beginnings, its heights, and its ending, as Bearden faces discrimination in the Army that strips him of his military aspirations.

Bearden's mixed race complexion concerned him because he wasn't always taken seriously as a Black artist representing the Black experience. As the author of this book notes, it was "his familiar conundrum ... the place of politics and Black identity in art."

I have a few favorite quotes from the book: Bearden's work was described by a musician who collaborated with him as "the visual equivalent of the blues." Ralph Ellison wrote "Art is the mystery that gets left out of history." From Gilmore, the author, "White supremacy's theft of memory continued into death..." Finally, in Bearden's own words, "I think the artist has to be something like a whale, swimming with his mouth wide open, absorbing everything until he has what he really needs." Anyone who loves Bearden's art needs this book.

[Janice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stumbled on this book at the library and really enjoyed learning how his family history impacted his art.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good exploration into the life of Romare Bearden’s middle class African American family held back by relentless white supremacy and the effects of that on his art.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am interested in Bearden's artworks. The details about his ancestors were less interesting than how his artistic choices changed throughout his lifetime.

[Rachel Kirby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful little book, by Glenda Gilmore. She does a great job blending art, history, and memory. Not only does Gilmore insightfully present Bearden’s work, she does so with a carefully considered and explained methodological approach to the places where “history” and “memory” seem to be at odds. A worthwhile read for those interested in art, history, the South, and scholarly methodology.