During the 1920s and early 1930s the New York City district of Harlem became the centre of a cultural movement that was unique in African American history. Encouraged by a new confidence, Black artists produced a great body of literary work, paintings and sculptures and moreover found expression in music and performing arts. In this essay I want to outline the socioeconomic forces that led to the Harlem Renaissance and describe the period as such along with its development throughout time. Pointing out the common ground of the period’s artists, the motivation for that sudden outburst of black American creativity and the ideas behind the works will then justify the claim that the Harlem Renaissance, although rather short as a cultural epoch, did have a lasting impact on American culture as a whole.
