The Crisis, September 1927
Aaron Douglas, The Crisis, September 1927. Offset-printed magazine cover. This issue features a stylized illustration composed of flattened geometric forms and silhouetted figures characteristic of Douglas’s Harlem Renaissance work. The design moves laterally from imagery referencing ancient Egypt to scenes of modern industry, while a central female figure in profile supports a globe. Douglas integrates African-inspired visual motifs with modernist composition, creating a cover that links historical reference with contemporary Black life through bold shape, contrast, and symbolic imagery.
