Sweet Home Bronzeville
Pamela Scala
The Chicago Academy
5th Grade
Social Studies and Language Arts
Archibald John Motley, Jr.
Nightlife, 1943
Oil on canvas
Art Institute of Chicago
Key information & ideas about
Nightlife
Motley wanted to show African Americans in a positive light in
his paintings and often portrayed them having fun.
The painting portrays a sense of relative prosperity in
Bronzeville because the African American men and women
are wearing fashionable suits and dresses.
Depicts African Americans enjoying an evening in a
Bronzeville nightclub. By showing them in an inviting
atmosphere, having a good time and escaping their troubles,
attempting to show the similarities between African Americans
and other races: everyone likes to have a good time and
forget their worries.
Goals for Lesson—what I wanted
students to learn:
Major contributions by African Americans to American
culture through art and music.
Importance of jazz music and its influence on popular
American music styles.
The transition of African Americans from rural to
urban life and the development of Bronzeville.
Use of research to write a historically correct fictional
narrative.
A few major learning activities:
 Students read the novel Bud, Not Buddy by
Christopher Paul Curtis to understand historical
fiction.
 Students listened to jazz music and read about the
lives of famous musicians.
 Students wrote fictional narratives using the
research materials on the The Great Migration and
Bronzeville.
Students studied the painting Nightlife by Archibald
Motley Jr.
Students read the novel
Bud, Not Buddy and created a
literature journal, dictionary and
classroom bulletin board of facts
about The Great Migration and
Jazz eras.
Students did research on
Bronzeville and wrote historically
correct fictional narratives using
the figures in the painting Nightlife
by Archibald Motley.
Students learned:
Literature can complement and enhance a piece of art.
Music can set the tone and mood to better understand the
meaning behind a work of art.
A painting can invoke higher order thinking skills.
A painting can ignite creative ideas for fictional writing.
Art can be read like a book for information on an artist, era
and subject matter.
A picture really is worth a 1000 words.
What I learned:
Student saw many more details and responded with more
intuitive thoughts about a painting than I was expecting .
Students are open to any type of art. They are not
inhibited by any medium.
Students enjoy experiencing new music forms.
Students are interested in and amazed about different
eras of history, especially those so close to their home.
• Students can use research to write a creative and
interesting fictional narrative.