In search of Romare Bearden and Hanging in Harlem 12/20/14

It all started with a sign on a post. We were on the West Side of Manhattan, on the edge of the  neighborhood of Harlem when we saw it. Oh wow, Columbia has an Bearden exhibit. Stars line up sometimes, and they did on this day- Winter Solstice eve. Our intended tour of the Cathedral Church of st. John the Divine was cancelled despite its website saying they happened. But, just down the street was that institution of Higher Learning and despite the campus being near deserted d/t holiday break, the Wallach Art Gallery was open for one more day. So we got to go!

I had been to Columbia before, but not Schermerhorn Hall of the Humanities Center. It was a bit spooky being on a ghost campus, but the quiet space gave us a chance to look and appreciate the surroundings. Like realizing that Columbia is old. Like 1754 old. And not quite in Harlem, but down the street a block or two, which makes all the difference in NYC. Columbia is actually Morningside Heights. 

I knew though that Romare Bearden called NYC home, despite early roots in the south and some sort of affiliation with Pittsburgh (where I went to the subway station when there last year to see the Bearden's gorgeous  $15 million tiled mural) and that he hung in Harlem for years. 

What I also knew was that President Obama was an alum of Columbia, and that I just happened to be currently reading a book by a very nice looking black man and professor at Columbia, "High Price" by Carl Hart. 

What I didn't know was that there was a Zora Neale Hurston professor of English (now how did she end up being the name of a professorship? The woman died broke and in obscurity back in FL before Alice Walker rediscovered her and brought her name and memory back to the masses) and this man, Robert O'Mealy, conceived and curated this show. 

http://news.columbia.edu/newyorkstories/3474

This traveling exhibit, with help from both the Smithsonian and Stavros Foundation, was quite a nice show. On the small side, but augmented by technology such as ipad installation, video (yes we bought the dvd), and smartphone technology like this:

 I was so impressed!

So even though we didn't have a huge amount of time, we were able to see a free exhibit of one of my favorite black artists. This man worked tirelessly in Harlem for years to support other black artists and the Romare Bearden Foundation carries on his work to this day (I wonder why Bearden didn't have any children?).

Here is a sample of his work and some of my favorites from the exhibit:

 Bearden became famous for his collages, which remind me of Matisse's work (no art is original and Bearden did study art in Paris in 1950). I learned that he often cut his pieces from the newly high glossy printed magazines of the times.

my personal favorite

 The exhibit stated somewhere that Bearden had a studio above the Apollo Theater at some point, but I could not find verification of this anywhere. In fact, in later searching I found out that Bearden didn't even live in Harlem himself. He lived way down on Canal St. for most of his time spent in NYC. Now I will have to do some more reading up/research and it will give me somewhere else in NYC to check out. Always love reasons to come back!

I liked this watercolor the best I don't know why.

Am adding some shots of the campus wanderings.

 Loved the old hardware on the Schermerhorn building. This was the front door. Why it needed a knocker, I haven't a clue.

 Can you guess? We saw several of these. Peter guessed it and it was confirmed by the security guards when I asked them. Rat poison bait stations. When I looked amazed that they'd set out these ugly big gross things on these hallowed grounds, one guard said, "There's rats all over NY ma'am."

 The view down Amsterdam Ave. from our corner and the student bridge across the street to the other side of the campus.

 Peter says there are identical cast iron fixtures in downtown Spfld., MA at Symphony Hall. Such craftsmanship + so reminiscent of another era. 

 It smells of Ivy League to me. 

 At the student bridge and over into the law section across the street were more modern sculptures. This one, "Life Force" is a conical portal that many before me did the same thing I did, which was climb up and over the edging and marched right up to see what I could see, which wasn't a damn thing!

This...this...well this, I was a bit miffed when we couldn't find a plaque explaining it and we both scratched our heads. So before you do too much scratching,  here just take what I lifted from some site:

Bellerophon Taming Pegasus

Jacques Lipchitz
1966-77

“Don’t expect a blinded lady with scales and all those things from me,” said sculptor Jacques Lipchitz when Columbia Law School approached him in 1964 to create a work of art on the campus. “I will try to think of something else.”

The result is the 23-ton bronze sculpture “Bellerophon Taming Pegasus” towering above the west entrance of Jerome Greene Hall on Revson Plaza. At approximately 30 by 28 feet and nearly five stories high, the outdoor sculpture is one of New York City’s largest.

Lipchitz’s sculpture depicts the Greek hero Bellerophon wrestling with the winged horse Pegasus, whose hooves, wings and tail radiate in all directions. The tangle of bodies stands precariously atop a base that looks like a giant railroad spike driven into the stairs.

The placement of “Bellerophon” takes careful account of its surroundings. The sculpture’s whirlwind energy contrasts to the repeated vertical beams of Jerome Greene Hall behind it, while its mythological theme speaks to the neo-Classical architecture of Philosophy Hall across Revson Plaza on the University’s main campus.

The story of Bellerophon represented the dominance of man over nature, according to Lipchitz. In Greek mythology, Bellerophon tamed Pegasus with a golden bridle from the goddess Athena and with the horse’s help accomplished a series of tests Zeus had assigned him. “You observe nature, make conclusions, and from these you make rules…and law is born from that,” the artist once said.

Commissioned in 1966, “Bellerophon” took 11 years to arrive in Morningside Heights. Enlargements made in 1969 from plaster casts disappointed Lipchitz, who asked to start the project over. After his death in 1973, work continued at a foundry in Pietrasanta, Italy. Four years later, the sculpture was transported overseas in pieces and brought up the East River. Installation on the Law School campus took place six days later, and, after final work on the structural details was complete, a dedication followed on November 28, 1977.

The Law School community has interpreted the sculpture in a variety of ways. According to a “New York Times” article about the installation ceremony, one professor said, “That looks like me trying to teach criminal law.” He asked to remain anonymous.

http://www.law.columbia.edu/media_inquiries/news_events/2007/august07/sculptures

We ended our day in search of Bearden's "supposed" studio in Harlem. Granted it was dark (not late, it's Solstice eve remember), but we were highly dubious about this fact even before we could get home and dig in to search for some truth to the story. I snapped off a few shots of the neighborhood:

 It looked purdy driving on to 125th street.

 Yeah, we were also a tad curious as to the whereabouts of Mr. Clinton. Wasn't he the one who now was above the Apollo? We did find this funny capitalist response to the gentrification of the neighborhood after the former president moved in.

Peter wouldn't let me stop for more product (6 drawer- fuls is more than enough he thinks). 

 My first ever sight, a sneaker sandwich board!

And finally an Apollo drive-by, with unsated minds. Did Bearden have an art studio there or not? One day I will find that answer, just not on 12/20/2014.