The Wedding.

Jacob Lawrence, The Wedding, 1948 Tempera on gessoed panel, 20 x 24" (51 x 61 cm). The Art Institute of Chicago Gift of Mary P. Hines in memory of her mother, Frances W. Pick, 1993.258.

In The Wedding, Lawrence depicted both the private and public aspects of a wedding ceremony, where a couple makes public their most private commitments and vows to each other. Befitting the solemnity of the event, the composition is arranged with symmetrical rigidity: a stern-faced minister addresses the bride and groom, while two attendants stand nearby in profile. The contours of the figures and flower stands, a series of convex and concave lines, create a sense of contained nervous energy that finds release in the extreme abundance of brightly colored flowers and stained-glass windows that surround the figures.

Jacob Lawrence moved to New York's Harlem neighborhood in 1930. As a teenager, he studied at a number of arts workshops, including the Harlem Art Workshop (now the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture). A talented student, Lawrence rapidly developed a bold, unique style, which he applied to seldom-treated subjects from Black history and contemporary life in Harlem.

Activity

Write a story describing the characters of this painting? What do you think the minister is saying to the bride and groom at this moment?

Maria Marable-Bunch, associate director of teacher programs, Department of Museums Education, the Art Institute of Chicago.