Aaron Douglas Becomes the Harlem Renaissance's 'Official Artist'

By 1926, Aaron Douglas—who had arrived in Harlem in 1925 after studying under German artist Winold Reiss—became the defining visual voice of the Harlem Renaissance, illustrating covers and editorial spreads for The Crisis and Opportunity magazines. His distinctive geometric style, using flat African-silhouette figures and muted color, appeared on Crisis covers about lynching, jazz, and theater, and in the single issue of Fire!! magazine, establishing a visual aesthetic for the movement.