Charles Henry Alston
American painter, sculptor, illustrator, muralist and teacher, 1907–1977
Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, Alston moved north and earned his degrees at Columbia University, receiving the Arthur Wesley Dow Fellowship in 1930. He is best known as an abstract painter and longtime instructor at the Art Students League of New York. However, like many artists establishing themselves in the era of the Harlem Renaissance, Alston produced figurative work and illustrations early in his career. He also produced murals and was the first African American WPA project supervisor, leading a staff of 35 artists and assistants to create the Harlem Hospital Center murals. Working as director of the boys’ program at Utopia Children’s House, he discovered a 10-year-old Jacob Lawrence in the after-school arts and crafts program. His work is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Whitney Museum of Art, among many other institutions.
Person TypeIndividual
Terms
- artists
- male
- African American
American illustrator and portrait artist, 1908–1983
American artist, 1895–1987
American artist and teacher, 1905–1998
Mexican American artist and master muralist, born 1968
American painter and illustrator, 1896–1934
American cartoonist, 1912–1995
American painter and educator, born 1942
