The Land of the Lotus Eaters

Artwork by Romare Beardon

About the Artist

• Romare Bearden (1914-1988)

• Famous African American author of the Harlem Renaissance

• Born in Charlotte, NC

• Moved to Harlem

• Joined the Army in 1942

• Moved to Paris to study art

Bearden’s Art

• Work focused mainly on the African American experience

• Worked in the medium of collages

Collages

• Were first used in modern times by the cubists (who inspired Bearden in Paris)

• For Bearden’s collages, he combined his artist’s eye and his love of jazz

• He took fragments of pictures and colors and arranged them to form figures and scenes that became unified storytelling creations

Bearden’s collage materials

• He used a large variety including:

• Pictures from magazines

• Photographs

• Fabrics

• paint

Reasons to make collage

• Bearden liked collage because with it he was able to combine related moments and events in his work

• To show the relation of past and present• To express the color and richness of life

that he associated with African American culture

Bearden’s Odyssey

• Bearden did an African American version of the ancient Greek classic, The Odyssey

• He wanted to reinterpret memories and stories in African American terms

Land of the Lotus Eaters

• Done in 1977

• From his collection of Odyssey stories

Introducing the Collage

• What colors predominate in the collage?

• How would you describe the tones of these colors?

• Describe the terrain in the collage.

Introducing the Collage

• What effect does the diagonal line of the river have on the viewer’s path of vision?

• What sort of texture does the collage have?

• What are the people in the collage doing? What seems to be their mood?

Land of the Lotus Eaters

• Answer the following questions on the worksheet - in complete sentences

Additional Collages

• Cyclops

• Battle of the Cicones

The Cyclops

• Painting by French Artist Odilon Redon

• Tones of pastel

• Oils

• Dream-like mythical images