Harlem on My Mind: Cultural Capital of Black America, 1900-1968

This project was finally inspired by the book: Harlem on My Mind: Cultural Capital of Black America, 1900-1968 [Paperback] , Allon Schoener (Editor).

http://www.amazon.com/Harlem-My-Mind-Cultural-1900-1968/dp/15955815...

"Harlem on My Mind provoked outrage in 1969. The issues it raised are no less alive today."—The New York Times, 1995."Remains one of the richest and most comprehensive records of the history of the African American in the twentieth century."—from the 1995 foreword by Henry Louis Gates Jr.

"In Harlem On My Mind, one witnesses it all--the joys, sorrows, and triumphs of this mecca of Black achievement.... It is an important contribution, not only to the history of Harlem but to the history of America as well."--Gordon Parks.

"it should be considered a history of the time; it is important for the present generation and coming generations.... No household, school, orlibrary should be without it."--James VanDerZee.

Long before Harlem became one of the trendiest neighborhoods in the red-hot real estate market of Manhattan, it was a metaphor for African American culture at its richest. Allon Schoener's celebrated Harlem on My Mind is the classic record of Harlem life during some of the most exciting and turbulent years of its history, a beautiful—and poignant—reminder of a powerful moment in African America history.

These extraordinary images are juxtaposed with articles from publications such as the New York Times and the Amsterdam News, which have helped to record the life of one of New York's most memorialized neighborhoods.

Originally published in 1969 as the catalogue to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's controversial exhibition of the same name, Harlem on My Mind is as compelling today as it was when first published.

Notables

Including the work of some of Harlem's most treasured photographers, among them

• James VanDerZee
• Gordon Parks

There are photographs of Harlem's literary lights—

• Langston Hughes
• Countee Cullen
• Richard Wright
• James Baldwin

Its politicians—

• Marcus Garvey
• Malcolm X
• Adam Clayton Powell Jr.

Its musicians—

• Ethel Waters
• Duke Ellington
• Billie Holiday

The book also includes the photographs of the everyday folk who gave life to this legendary community.

Links and resources

• Famous Harlem Renaissance Figures a to z
• FBI monitored and critiqued African American writers for decades
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