LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2007 December Signature Texas Art #657  / 

36349

JOHN BIGGERS, Early Texas Art, graphite/paper

Currency:USD Category:Art Start Price:6,750.00 USD Estimated At:8,000.00 - 12,000.00 USD
JOHN BIGGERS, Early Texas Art, graphite/paper
<B>JOHN BIGGERS (1924-2001)</B></I><BR>Untitled<BR>Graphite on paper<BR>22-1/2 x 18 inches (57.2 x 45.7 cm)<BR>Signed and dated lower right<BR><BR> Among the first generation of university-trained African American artists, John Biggers is internationally known for his murals, oils, graphic works, and prints. He was born in Gastonia, North Carolina, and studied at the Hampton Institute in Virginia. In 1943, while at Hampton, Biggers' mural, <I>Negro Soldier,</B></I> was included at the seminal exhibition, <I>Young Negro Art</B></I>, at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.<BR><BR>In 1949, he moved to Houston where he founded the art department at Texas Southern University. Up until this time it was almost impossible for young Negro artists to obtain formal training in fine arts. In 1950, Biggers won first prize at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, for his painting, <I>The Cradle.</B></I> In 1957, he traveled to Africa to explore his African heritage. He published a book based on his travels in Ghana, Nigeria, and other African countries. <BR><BR>Biggers was searching for an understanding of his African heritage. The deeply felt words and pictures in his book, <I>Ananse Web of Life</B></I>, record his discoveries.<BR><BR>In the following, Biggers provides an intimate view of "the web of life" in West Africa.<BR><I><BR>My intention was to discover and to portray what was intrinsically African. I was not interested in showing the degree to which Africans measured up to American or European standards in materialistic acquisitions; I was solely interested in capturing something universal in the many ... washerwomen, farming women, fishermen, lumber workers, market women, mothers, fathers, and children.<BR><BR>I envisioned three general geographical areas that offered contrasts: life near the sea, life in the forest region, and life on the open plains. Yet I wanted to show in these contrasting areas a thread of homogeneity that held the people together, that linked them in their struggle, in their destiny. The eighty-nine drawings in this book represent my effort.<BR><BR>Since the publication of the book coincided with the advent of the civil rights movement, Ananse became a means by which African Americans learned about, and took pride in, their heritage and armed themselves for cultural battle.....Arriving like a magnificent and unexpected gift, [it] helped elevate the collective black consciousness to a new and higher level of self-awareness.</B></I><BR>(Alvia J. Wardlaw, in <I>The Art of John Biggers: View from the Upper Room)</B></I><BR><BR>In 1995, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, in conjunction with Hampton University, organized a retrospective of his work to great acclaim.<B>Condition Report:</B> Excellent condition. Period frame in excellent condition.<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Requires 3rd Party Shipping (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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