Program for Contemporary Negro Art Exhibition, October 16th to November 7th
New York: McMillen Inc, 1941.
First edition. 4 pp. Bound in publisher's blue wraps lettered in brown. Good+ with vertical fold, light toning and small stains on front and rear covers. An incredibly scarce piece of African American memorabilia featuring the works of artists of the Harlem Renaissance. This was the first commercial exhibition of modern Black art in New York City and was announced in The New York Times, "most of the artists have earned their living as janitors, elevator operators and domestics, though some have college degrees." The most prominent artist featured was Romare Bearden, his first exhibition outside of Harlem, with two paintings The Visitation and Woman Picking Cotton. The venue for the exhibition was held at McMillen, an interior design firm that remains in business to this day, whose wealthy clients included Henry Ford, William Paley and socialite Doris Duke.
Price: $1,350