A watercolor of people walking toward a storefront church with a stained glass window and, through the open door, Black people sit in pews in front of a pastor at a pulpit.

There are many churches in Harlem. The people are very religious.

Jacob Armstead Lawrence (1917-2000)

Date

1943
Medium

Transparent and opaque watercolor and tempera over graphite on paper
Dimensions

15 1/2 x 22 1/2 in.
Inscriptions

Recto:
u.l. signed and dated : J. Lawrence 43
l.l. in graphite: CHURCH [partially erased]
Credit Line

Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas
Accession Number

1987.94
Copyright

Public domain

The Carter Downtown

September 18, 1999–September 1, 2001

While the museum is closed for expansion, visitors will still have the opportunity to experience American art through “Greatest Hits” from the museum’s collection at the Carter’s temporary gallery in downtown Fort Worth.
Revealed Treasures: Drawings from the Permanent Collection

October 21, 2001–February 10, 2002

This exhibition of drawings spanning the 19th and 20th centuries represents the evolution of the medium from preliminary outlines for other artistic media to a modern means of self-expression in its own right.
The Allure of Paper: Drawings and Watercolors from the Collection

July 9–October 9, 2011

This special exhibition showcases one-of-a-kind works on paper never before exhibited together, chronicling the sweeping changes that occurred in American art over the course of nearly 200 years from portraiture and history painting to modernism and abstraction.

Location: Off view

See more by Jacob Lawrence

Educator Resources

What strategies might an artist use to convey a narrative?

What roles do churches play in communities? How are churches different from other buildings?

What can a building tell about an area’s geography and culture?

How might a work of art reflect or relate to important moments in history?
All Levels

Have students imagine they are one of the people in this church. Each student should consider the experience of the space, drawing upon all of their senses. Then students will use simple shapes and forms, like Jacob Lawrence did, to sketch their view as a person sitting inside.

Share Educator Resources

This information is published from the Carter's collection database. Updates and additions based on research and imaging activities are ongoing. The images, titles, and inscriptions are products of their time and are presented here as documentation, not as a reflection of the Carter’s values. If you have corrections or additional information about this object please email us to help us improve our records.

Every effort has been made to accurately determine the rights status of works and their images. Please email us if you have further information on the rights status of a work contrary or in addition to the information in our records.