MS01.01.03.B02.F05.036

10
To effectively set down in painterly language and with remarkable lucidity
the essence of blackness without individualizing
his subject. He encourage the overall use
of design thereby creating a unified
style in his work recognizable for specific
signs and symbols that Black Americans
knew. He sought out a stark thread
of unity which would combind music
and visual expression harmoniously. A
limited pallette of monochromatic tones
of greens, blues, yellows and browns is seen
in most of the works of the period along
with the maintainance of a flat style
of painting throughout his work. Pulsating, emotional
vibrations are evoked in these
works by cirular and concentric
bands of color that weare through
people, buildings and things in an electri-
fying manner. Douglas was seeking to in-
terpret, through his art, the spiritual
identity of a people not yet 100 years removed from American slavery.