Aaron Douglas was born on May 26, 1899 in Topeka, Kansas. He was the son of a baker and his mother was from Alabama. He had several brothers and sisters. Douglas's family struggled financially all through his childhood. But insisted that their children educated themselves. He was encouraged at an early age by his mother to continue his creative interest in art. His drawings and paintings were welcomed on the walls of the Douglas' home. His decision …showed first 75 words of 846 total…

…showed last 75 words of 846 total…it, write it, paint it. Let's do the impossible. Let's create something transcendentally material, mystically objective. Earthy. Spiritually earthy. Dynamic." He became a leading force in African American culture and history. He was a great inspiration to African Americans in the Harlem Renaissance years and was the portrayer of Africanism in great paintings. He wasn't the voice of blackness but yet he was something greater, the man who painted the image of the black struggle.