Jacob Lawrence was an American figurative painter known for his storytelling and vibrant palette. http://whitney.org/www/jacoblawrence/meet/index.html http://www.biography.com/articles/Jacob-Lawrence-9375562 He was born on September 7, 1917, in Atlantic City, New Jersey. http://www.biography.com/articles/Jacob-Lawrence-9375562 Lawrence's Man on a Scaffold was the first African-American artwork included in the New York Museum of Modern Art. http://www.cs.washington.edu/building/art/JacobLawrence/ In 1970, the artist became a professor at the University of Washington in the School of Art. http://www.cs.washington.edu/building/art/JacobLawrence/ Jacob Lawrence died on June 9, 2000, in Seattle, Washington. http://www.biography.com/articles/Jacob-Lawrence-9375562

Lawrence told visual narratives about the history and lives of African Diaspora with his art. http://www.cs.washington.edu/building/art/JacobLawrence/ The Life of Harriet Tubman (1940) is a 40-panel series about Harriet Tubman leading runaway slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad http://www.cs.washington.edu/building/art/JacobLawrence/ The Toussant L'Ouverture Series (1937) is 41-paintings showing the Haitian slave rebellion. http://www.cs.washington.edu/building/art/JacobLawrence/ The Migration Series (1941) is the Lawrence's most recognized work. The 60-painting series documents the post World War II, mass exodus African Americans from the South to the North. http://www.cs.washington.edu/building/art/JacobLawrence/

Jacob Lawrence received myriad awards and honors, including the National Medal of Arts (1990), the NAACP Annual Great Black Artists Award (1988), and the Spingarn Medal (1970). In 1978, President Jimmy Carter nominated Lawrence to serve as commissioner of the National Council of the Arts. The nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate. http://www.jacobandgwenlawrence.org/artandlife03.html In 1997, he was received the New York Artist Equity Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Visual Arts in New York City. http://www.jacobandgwenlawrence.org/artandlife03.html