Charles Alston

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"A drawing of Benjamin Banneker."
"A drawing of Benjamin Banneker."
"Again The Springboard Of Civilization", 1943 cartoon by Charles Alston featuring WWII African American soldier.
"Again The Springboard Of Civilization", 1943 cartoon by Charles Alston featuring WWII African American soldier.

Charles Alston (November 28, 1907 - April 27, 1977) was an African American teacher and artist. His 1934 "Girl in a Red Dress" uses such a vibrant red it reminds one of the Fauvists redux. Alston attended Columbia College and Teachers College at Columbia University. He began his career while still a student, illustrating covers for jazz musician Duke Ellington and poet Langston Hughes. Influenced by Diego Rivera and others, he painted murals throughout Harlem, often incorporating features of African art. During the Great Depression, he and Henry Bannarn directed the Harlem Art Workshop where Alston and Bannarn were mentor to Jacob Lawrence, among others. Alston was the first African-American instructor at the Arts Students' League (1950-1971) and the Museum of Modern Art (1956). He became a full professor at the City University of New York (CUNY) in 1973.

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