Roy DeCarava

(American, 1919–2009)

Roy DeCarava was a photographer best known for chronicling the daily life of the Black community and famous Jazz musicians in his hometown of Harlem, New York during the Harlem Renaissance. His most famous works include Graduation and John Coltrane, which were both featured in his book “The Sweet Flypaper of Life,” a collaboration with Langston Hughes. DeCarava began his career as a painter, using a camera only to record images to paint later. Becoming aware of the limitations faced by Black painters, he was eventually drawn to the immediacy of photography and shifted gears. DeCarava’s shift to photography was also a response to the Civil Rights Movement, and came from a desire to represent the Black community in an artistic light. “One of the things that got to me was that I felt that Black people were not being portrayed in a serious and in an artistic way,” he told the New York Times in 1982. In 1938, DeCarava was awarded a scholarship to the Cooper Union School of Art. He studied there for two years, before attending the Harlem Community Art Center, where his peers included Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence, and Langston Hughes. For his final year, DeCarava attended the George Washington Carver Art School, where he learned alongside the social realist Charles White. Throughout his career, DeCarava combined political commentary with aesthetic beauty. He passed away in Harlem in 2009. In 2019, David Zwirner Books published Light Break, a survey of DeCarava’s work. His photographs can also be seen in the MoMA, the Whitney, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Roy DeCarava News

On View

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Galleries

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Roy DeCarava Artworks

Artworks for Sale &
Auction Results

Roy DeCarava (188 results)
Man Standing Outside of a Building, 1952

Roy DeCarava

Man Standing Outside of a Building, 1952

Sale Date: October 5, 2021

Auction Closed

John Coltrane, Half Note, 1960

Roy DeCarava

John Coltrane, Half Note, 1960

Sale Date: October 5, 2021

Auction Closed

Graduation, 1949

Roy DeCarava

Graduation, 1949

Sale Date: October 5, 2021

Auction Closed

Untitled, circa 1960, 1960

Roy DeCarava

Untitled, circa 1960, 1960

Sale Date: September 9, 2021

Auction Closed

Catsup Bottles, Table and Coat, New York, 1952

Roy DeCarava

Catsup Bottles, Table and Coat, New York, 1952

Sale Date: May 27, 2021

Auction Closed

Dancers, 1956

Roy DeCarava

Dancers, 1956

Sale Date: April 21, 2021

Auction Closed

Cycle of Blue Collar Workers, New York, NY,..., 1963

Roy DeCarava

Cycle of Blue Collar Workers, New York, NY,..., 1963

Sale Date: October 2, 2020

Auction Closed

Lonely Women, 1960

Roy DeCarava

Lonely Women, 1960

Sale Date: June 11, 2020

Auction Closed

TWO WOMEN, MANNEQUIN'S HAND, 1950

Roy DeCarava

TWO WOMEN, MANNEQUIN'S HAND, 1950

Sale Date: April 3, 2020

Auction Closed

Man in Window, 1978

Roy DeCarava

Man in Window, 1978

Sale Date: October 24, 2019

Auction Closed

Boy with bowed head, 1961

Roy DeCarava

Boy with bowed head, 1961

Sale Date: October 17, 2019

Auction Closed

Untitled (Harry Belafonte, Carnegie Hall)., 1960

Roy DeCarava

Untitled (Harry Belafonte, Carnegie Hall)., 1960

Sale Date: October 8, 2019

Auction Closed

Hallway, New York, 1953

Roy DeCarava

Hallway, New York, 1953

Sale Date: October 1, 2019

Auction Closed

Couple Dancing, 1956

Roy DeCarava

Couple Dancing, 1956

Sale Date: July 23, 2019

Auction Closed

Dancers, 1955

Roy DeCarava

Dancers, 1955

Sale Date: July 23, 2019

Auction Closed

'COLTRANE + ELVIN, 1960

Roy DeCarava

'COLTRANE + ELVIN, 1960

Sale Date: April 5, 2019

Auction Closed

Couple dancing, 1956

Roy DeCarava

Couple dancing, 1956

Sale Date: April 6, 2019

Auction Closed

Roy DeCarava: Twelve Photogravures, 1950–1979

Roy DeCarava

Roy DeCarava: Twelve Photogravures, 1950–1979

Sale Date: April 2, 2019

Auction Closed

Dancers (Harlem), 1955

Roy DeCarava

Dancers (Harlem), 1955

Sale Date: February 21, 2019

Auction Closed

Portfolio entitled Roy DeCarava, 1950–1979

Roy DeCarava

Portfolio entitled Roy DeCarava, 1950–1979

Sale Date: October 18, 2018

Auction Closed

Hallway, 1953

Roy DeCarava

Hallway, 1953

Sale Date: October 18, 2018

Auction Closed

Kids God Bless, 1960

Roy DeCarava

Kids God Bless, 1960

Sale Date: October 2, 2018

Auction Closed

Man Lying Down, Subway Steps, 1965

Roy DeCarava

Man Lying Down, Subway Steps, 1965

Sale Date: October 4, 2018

Auction Closed

Billie Holiday (Billie at Braddocks, New York), 1952

Roy DeCarava

Billie Holiday (Billie at Braddocks, New York), 1952

Sale Date: October 4, 2018

Auction Closed

English (US)

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