ROMARE BEARDEN
Also at the Asheville Art Museum yesterday was an exhibit that I almost missed. It consisted of an hour long film on the life of Romare Bearden and an exhibit of about twenty of his paintings. Romare Bearden, 1911-1988, grew up in Charlotte, NC, and was connected with the Harlem Renaissance. His subject was African American cultural history which he examined in a number of mediums. He is best known for his collages which combined pasted cut outs form popular magazines combined with painting.
I won‘t try to summarize his painting. I‘ll give you an example of a few of his paintings and a link to film I saw on You Tube: BEARDEN PLAYS BEARDEN. What struck me most was his combination of realism and mythology as commented on by Joseph Campbell.
BILLYBABA’S WANDERING 