Archibald John Motley Jr.

Bronzeville at Night

A kaleidoscopic parade of dapper men, elegant young women, rambunctious youths, and blue collar workers fills Motley’s nocturne, which is set in the neighborhood known as Bronzeville on Chicago’s South Side.

The jazz-infused neighborhood of pool halls and cabarets was both ribald and artistically invigorating to Motley. His vivid and energetic scene is enclosed by brick and asphalt, with no sign of nature. It is an urban canyon illuminated by the glow of artificial light; its denizens carouse amid signs that advertise alcohol and tobacco or present sly innuendo. A window above the street frames a voluptuous woman, who, together with the sultry hustler at far left, counters the innocence of a thumb-sucking child in the foreground.

Motley was the first American artist to paint images of Black social life in cities, and this work is both earnest and exuberant, presenting a colorful tangle of vice and vitality that illustrates the complex dynamics of city life.