ARTS 2283: African American Art: African American Art: eBooks (full-text)

A younger generation of scholars, well equipped with postmodernist theories, is making significant contributions to the history of African­American fine artists of the nineteenth century. Their investigation of issues of race, class, gender and sexuality has expanded upon the earlier information on biography and style to provide a rich text about the possible meanings of African­American art and the relationship between culture, society and production. It is in this context that this book has been written, and the work is organized as follows

MLA (Modern Language Assoc.)
Patton, Sharon F. African-American Art. Oxford University Press, 1998.

APA (American Psychological Assoc.)
Patton, S. F. (1998). African-American Art. Oxford University Press.

This Companion authoritatively points to the main areas of enquiry within the subject of African American art history. The first section examines how African American art has been constructed over the course of a century of published scholarship. The second section studies how African American art is and has been taught and researched in academia. The third part focuses on how African American art has been reflected in art galleries and museums. The final section opens up understandings of what we mean when we speak of African American art. This book will be of interest to graduate students, researchers, and professors and may be used in American art, African American art, visual culture, and culture classes.

have written this book with the aim of breathing fresh life into African American art history by focusing upon the aesthetic issues and experi-mental practices of artists working across a long time frame and a diverse range of media. Emerging during slavery and surviving on down through to a post-civil rights era, black visual arts have taken many forms including mural, portrait, landscape and abstract painting; sculpture; daguerreotyping and photography; pottery, quilting and collage; assem-blage, installation, street and performance art. Despite their many and important differences, it is possible to trace thematic and formal conti-nuities across this vast body of works produced by African American artists living and working in the United States. Many artists have repeat-edly pushed the boundaries of media and materials in the search for a visual language which would represent the difficult realities of African American struggles for existence. For so many early artists emerging during slavery in particular, the act of sculpting, painting or quilting in and of itself constituted a radical act of self-expression and resistance

MLA (Modern Language Assoc.)
Bernier, Celeste-Marie, and British Association for American Studies. African American Visual Arts. Edinburgh University Press, 2008.

APA (American Psychological Assoc.)
Bernier, C.-M., & British Association for American Studies. (2008). African American Visual Arts. Edinburgh University Press.

In 1927, the Chicago Art Institute presented the first major museum exhibition of art by African Americans. Designed to demonstrate the artists'abilities and to promote racial equality, the exhibition also revealed the art world's anxieties about the participation of African Americans in the exclusive venue of art museums -- places where blacks had historically been barred from visiting let alone exhibiting. Since then, America's major art museums have served as crucial locations for African Americans to protest against their exclusion and attest to their contributions in the visual arts.In Exhibiting Blackness, art historian Bridget R. Cooks analyzes the curatorial strategies, challenges, and critical receptions of the most significant museum exhibitions of African American art. Tracing two dominant methodologies used to exhibit art by African Americans -- an ethnographic approach that focuses more on artists than their art, and a recovery narrative aimed at correcting past omissions -- Cooks exposes the issues involved in exhibiting cultural difference that continue to challenge art history, historiography, and American museum exhibition practices. By further examining the unequal and often contested relationship between African American artists, curators, and visitors, she provides insight into the complex role of art museums and their accountability to the cultures they represent.

Here is a visual celebration of African American Art from it's beginnings in Colonial America up to the present day. From early folk art to contemporary paintings, prints, and sculpture, a selection of 107 full-color illustrations presents the remarkable history of America's Black artistic heritage

John Thomas Biggers (1924-2001) was one of the most significant African American artists of the twentieth century. He was known for his murals, but also for his drawings, paintings, and lithographs, and was honored by a major traveling retrospective exhibition from 1995 to 1997. He created archetypal imagery that spoke positively to the rich and varied ethnic heritage of African Americans, long before the Civil Rights era drew attention to their African cultural roots. His influence upon other artists was profound, both for the power of his art and as professor and elder statesman to younger generations. Olive Jensen Theisen's long-time commitment to the art of John Biggers resulted from the serendipitous discovery of an early Biggers mural in a school storeroom in the mid-1980s. Theisen immediately recognized the artist, the work, and its significance. She then set about returning The History of Negro Education in Morris County, Texas to a place of honor and found herself becoming a friend and recorder of John Biggers's stories and experiences relating to the creation of his other murals too, including Family Unity at Texas Southern University. Containing more than eighty color and black-and-white illustrations, Walls That Speak is a richly illustrated update of an earlier edition published in 1996. The artist completed new murals between its publication and his death in 2001. In addition to the inclusion of the new murals, Theisen has added a chapter on Biggers's African art collection. The only work exclusively dedicated to his murals, this book will appeal to all those interested in murals or African American art

A richly illustrated celebration of the paintings of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama From the moment of their unveiling at the National Portrait Gallery in early 2018, the portraits of Barack and Michelle Obama have become two of the most beloved artworks of our time. Kehinde Wiley's portrait of President Obama and Amy Sherald's portrait of the former first lady have inspired unprecedented responses from the public, and attendance at the museum has more than doubled as visitors travel from near and far to view these larger-than-life paintings. After witnessing a woman drop to her knees in prayer before the portrait of Barack Obama, one guard said,'No other painting gets the same kind of reactions. Ever.'The Obama Portraits is the first book about the making, meaning, and significance of these remarkable artworks.Richly illustrated with images of the portraits, exclusive pictures of the Obamas with the artists during their sittings, and photos of the historic unveiling ceremony by former White House photographer Pete Souza, this book offers insight into what these paintings can tell us about the history of portraiture and American culture. The volume also features a transcript of the unveiling ceremony, which includes moving remarks by the Obamas and the artists. A reversible dust jacket allows readers to choose which portrait to display on the front cover.An inspiring history of the creation and impact of the Obama portraits, this fascinating book speaks to the power of art—especially portraiture—to bring people together and promote cultural change.Published in association with the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery, Washington, DC