Discussion of this work, such as in Peter Schjeldahl's New Yorker article Telling the Whole Story, or NPR's All Things Considered tend to focus on the narrative component. The story told in these panels is an immensely important part of the work, in particular because issues surrounding racism are as relevant today as they were back then. Lawrence wrote out all the text prior to making the work: complete text from Migration Series. He then he went back and illustrated the words with the images. This is an unusually literary approach to painting. A short video on the narrative from the KhanAcademy gives a good overview, with a reference to the text being like a poem. The text on its own can read as a poem in that it is often comprised of short concise sentences. One tries to imagine how the artist formed these sentences: were they written in one sitting as a continuous story, or were they jotted down as they randomly came to mind?

While the narrative content is definitely powerful, I was equally intrigued by the abstract nature of the work and how it relates to the artistic developments of the time (1940-41). The work reveals the influences of early American Modernism, in particular artists such as Arthur Dove and Marsden Hartley to come mind. You can also see evidence of the strong graphic style of Charles Sheeler and Stuart Davis. European influences would have been Picasso and Braque, especially in terms of the ambiguous perspective in cubism, as well as Matisse with his use of flat colours. A description goes into more detail than most about the formal artistic qualities of the work can be found here: American Art @ the Phillips Collection 

The work is striking because while the message is dark and stark, Lawrence's captivating graphic approach, including the velvety smooth finish of the medium used, allows the viewer to shift from the narration to the abstract qualities contained in the picture plane. The vitality of the images makes them strong enough to stand on their own, but the texts transform the work into a living document of history. If you can't make it to New York this summer, an excellent catalogue has been produced to accompany the exhibition: Jacob Lawrence: The Migration Series. 

 

 
Wendy Welch
Executive Director, Vancouver Island School of Art