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Romare Bearden

1911-1988

Best known for his vivid collages, Romare Bearden started out as a cartoonist for NYU’s monthly journal while studying education.  Bearden was a social worker for almost thirty years while he worked on his art at night. He continued to create cartoons for the Baltimore Afro-American until 1937. He had his first solo exhibition in 1940. In the 1960s, during the Civil Rights Movement, Bearden started to create his infamous collages that were more socially conscious than his previous artworks. Bearden is one of America’s preeminent artists. In his lifetime he was elected to the Academy of Arts and Letters, National Institute of Arts and Letters, and National Academy of Design. He was awarded the National Medal of Arts and recognized as one of the 100 Greatest African Americans.

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