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The Harlem Renaissance changed the trajectory of American culture, and no other artist encapsulates the spirit of that era better than poet Langston Hughes. He wrote unapologetically about Black life at a time when segregation was law and few Black artists were allowed into the American cultural zeitgeist.
Starting on February 1 — which just so happens to be Langston Hughes' birthday — The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is honoring Hughes and his friendship with photographer, filmmaker, and U.S. Foreign Service Officer Griffith J. Davis in its exhibit "The Ways of Langston Hughes." The free exhibit at the Schomburg Center's Latimer Gallery in Harlem will include photographs of Hughes and Davis, who met in Atlanta, as well as more of Hughes' friendships through letters, artwork and other memorabilia.
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Not only will the exhibit bring to life an important era in New York City’s history, but it is also an intimate look into the friendships that thrived during the Harlem Renaissance. Among other items on display will be a watercolor painting by Joseph Barker of Langston Hughes' home and a letter from Hughes to his playwright friend, Lorraine Hansberry.
The exhibition was put together in collaboration with Griff Davis' daughter and President of Griffith J. Davis Photographs and Archives, Dorothy M. Davis.
"Langston Hughes and my Dad, Griff Davis, were best friends for 20 years. Their friendship spanned the African diaspora," says Davis. "The photographs and personal letters between them in the exhibition provide a rare insight into how these two men supported each other in their pursuit of their respective dreams against all odds."
... a rare insight into how these two men supported each other in their pursuit of their respective dreams against all odds.
The Harlem Renaissance was a period of cultural revival in the 1920s and 1930s during which Black artists, intellectuals and creatives came together to create a movement that centered self-determination and celebrated Black identity. The epicenter of the movement was located in Harlem and involved prominent figures including Jean Toomer, Louis Armstrong, Zora Neale Hurston, and many others.
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is a research division of the New York Public Library and has played a large part in preserving Langston Hughes' legacy — it also happens to be the place where the poet is buried. You can visit the Center’s website for more information on the exhibit, which will continue until July 8.
In addition to the Schomburg Center's exhibit, The Met will also focus on the Harlem Renaissance in an exhibit this February titled "The Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism."