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Roland Ayers Art

American, 1932-2014

Roland Ayers was born on July 2, 1932, the only child of Alice and Lorenzo Ayers and grew up in the Germantown district of Philadelphia. Ayers served in the US Army (stationed in Germany) before studying at the Philadelphia College of Art (currently University of the Arts). He graduated with a BFA in art education, 1954. He traveled Europe, 1966–67, spending time in Amsterdam and Greece in particular. During this period, he drifted away from painting to focus on linear figurative drawings of a surreal nature. His return home inaugurated the artist’s most prolific and inspired period (1968–1975). Shortly before his second major trip abroad in 1971–72 to West Africa, Ayers began to focus on African themes and African American figures populated his work almost exclusively. Despite Ayers’ travel and exploration of the world, he gravitated back to his beloved Germantown, a place he endowed with mythological qualities in his work and literature. His autobiographical writing focuses on the importance of place during his childhood. Ayers’ journals meticulously document the ethnic and cultural make-up of Germantown and tell a compelling story of class marginalization that brought together poor families despite racial differences. The distinctive look and design of Germantown inform Ayers’ visual vocabulary. It is a setting with distinctive Gothic Revival architecture and haunting natural beauty. These characteristics are translated and recur in the artist’s imagery. During his childhood, one of the only books in the Ayers household was an illustrated Bible. The images within had a profound effect on the themes and subjects that would appear in his adult work. Figures in Ayers’ drawing often seem trapped in a narrative of loss and redemption. Powerful women loom large in the drawings, they suggest the female role models his journal record in early life. The drawings can sometimes convey a strong sense of conflict and at other times, harmony. Nature and architecture seem to have an antagonistic relationship that is, ironically, symbiotic. A critical turning point in the artist’s career came in 1971, when he was included in the extremely controversial Whitney Museum show, Contemporary Black Artists in America. The exhibition gave Ayers an international audience and served as a calling card for introductions he would soon make in Europe. Ayers is a particularly compelling figure in a period when black artists struggled with the idea of authenticity. A question often asked was “Is your work too black or not black enough?” Abstractionists were considered by some peers to be sell-outs, frauds or worse. Figurative work was accused of being either sentimental or politically radical depending on the critical source. Ayers made the choice early on to be a figurative artist but considered his work devoid of political content. Organizations such as Chicago’s Afri-Cobra in the late 1960s asserted that the only true black art of any relevance must depict the black man and woman. A martial agenda of this nature trivialized the work in Ayers’ view. A devotee of Eastern religions, Ayers sought to explore deeper subjects of a less topical nature, thereby stepping outside political discourse. This is not to suggest that he was a man who rejected the physical world. He was profoundly interested in awareness of the environment and how it relates to self-awareness. He often spoke of universality and timelessness as qualities to strive for in his art. Roland Ayers, In His Own Words, ”A person who refuses or is unable to give in to the consensus of his or her society may retain the capacity to see the world in a vastly different way. That person, in addition to having his or her construct of the world — and we all have that — usually has also retained the capacity to be more aware of that unique way of seeing as well as to use it."

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Artist: Roland Ayers
Hesitation Blues (Black Surrealist Artist)
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Surrealist proto-Afropunk drawing by African-American artist, Roland Ayers (1932-2014). Hesitation Blues, 1968. Ink on paper, sheet measures 13 x 23 inches; 14 x 18 inches in archiva...
Category

1960s Surrealist Roland Ayers Art

Materials

Ink, Archival Paper

Animal Capers (Black Surrealist Artist)
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Surrealist proto-Afropunk drawing by African-American artist, Roland Ayers (1932-2014). Animal Capers, ca. 1970 . Ink on illustration board, image measures 20 inches. inches; ill...
Category

1970s Surrealist Roland Ayers Art

Materials

Ink, Archival Paper

Improvisation abstract African-American artist painting.
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Roland Ayers (1932-2017). Improvisation, 2nd Series, #5. Ink on paper, measures 19 x 24 inches. Unframed and unmounted. Signed and dated lower right, titled lower left. There are a f...
Category

1980s Abstract Roland Ayers Art

Materials

Paper, Ink

Untitled
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Roland Ayers (1932-2017). Untitled, 1983. Ink on paper, measures 17 x 23 inches. Unframed and unmounted. Signed and dated lower left. Ayers holds the distinction of having participa...
Category

1980s Abstract Roland Ayers Art

Materials

Paper, Ink

Never fight " Over a Man " Ladies
By Roland Ayers
Located in San Francisco, CA
C. 20th Century Lovely Piece of art by Roland Ayers " Women fighting over a man " Done in Watercolor B. 1932 - D. 2014
Category

20th Century Roland Ayers Art

Materials

Watercolor

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Previously Available Items
3rd Mandala
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Roland Ayers (1932-2017). 3rd Mandala, 1982. Ink on paper, measures 17 x 23 inches. Unframed and unmounted. Signed and dated lower right. A note in corner may indicate the occasion f...
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Improvisation #8, Series 1
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Roland Ayers (1932-2017). Improvisation #8, Series 1, 1980. Ink on paper, measures 18 x 24 inches. Unframed and unmounted. Signed and dated lower right, titled lower left. Ayers hol...
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1980s Abstract Geometric Roland Ayers Art

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Ink

The People (Urban African-American Afrofuturism Landscape)
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Roland Ayers (1932-2014), The People, 1975. Image measures 25 x 39 inches, 32 x 46 inches framed. Signed and dated lower left. Search terms: Black artist; Philadelphia artist; Afrof...
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1970s American Realist Roland Ayers Art

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Untitled
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Surrealist proto-Afropunk drawing by African-American artist, Roland Ayers (1932-2014). Untitled, 1969. Ink on Strathmore archival paper, sheet measures 17.5 x 23 inches; 28.5 x 35 i...
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Untitled
Untitled
H 35 in W 28.5 in D 1 in
The Backyard
By Roland Ayers
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Magical Realist painting by African-American artist, Roland Ayers (1932-2014). The Backyard, 1960. Oil on artist board, 16 x 20 inches; 21 x 25 inches in a carved and gilt wood frame...
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The Backyard
The Backyard
H 25 in W 21 in D 2 in

Roland Ayers art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Roland Ayers art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Roland Ayers in ink, paper, archival paper and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Roland Ayers art, so small editions measuring 10 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Stephen Greene, Robert Ruello, and Hildegarde Haas. Roland Ayers art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $1,000 and tops out at $8,000, while the average work can sell for $1,500.

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