DOING RESEARCH ON BLACK AMERICANS in the visual arts, one can be frustrated by the difficulty of locating material. Even in this age of mass publication, where much press coverage has been given to the black artist’s thrust for recognition by the art establishment, the material is all too ephemeral. Books soon go out of print, or if one has not had the foresight to snatch them up as soon as they are released, they are soon allowed to become scarce on bookshelves. The holdings of libraries are often inadequate or missing. Also, much vital information, including catalogues, may be mimeographed, easily discarded, and usually unavailable after a show has closed.
All too often, a major problem also lies in the identification of just who is a black artist. Setting aside the various personal positions taken by individual black artists, the question of one’s race does become important given the black’s ambiguous and infrequent appearance on the American art scene. So, for historical reference, this identification is vital. It has not been unusual that museums have possessed Edward Bannisters and Robert Ducansons in their collections without knowing the artist’s racial origin. It is impossible to negate the ramifications of such phenomena against the political backdrop of our contemporary world. Since there is no comprehensive directory of black artists, one must know the sources which can be consulted for this information. The Boston Public Library is currently in the process of compiling information to publish a directory of black artists. See section on unpublished material.
The following is not merely a bibliography that seeks to bring the last published one up to date. The author has tried to classify the works in different categories to demonstrate the different aspects of the black artist. The names of organizations, institutions, etc., as well as individuals, which are sources of information have also been included. The author is indebted to the following individuals who gave freely of their time and offered valuable information and help: Benny Andrews, Camille Billups, Pearl Bowser, Catherine Chance, James Hatch, Howardena Pindell, Faith Ringgold, Lucille Roberts, and Jewel Simon. The author has not attempted to list references for individual artists except where this information is essential. She believes that having been led to sources for names, the researcher may then consult other included references for a more individualized bibliography. The author makes no claim to all-inclusiveness. Although much of the information has been culled from sources in the New York area, every attempt has been made to indicate sources in other parts of the country. This work is offered as a starting point, and the author welcomes further corrections and additions.
BIBLIOGRAPHIC COMPILATIONS
One of the most valuable bibliographic sources is the Subject Index to Literature on Negro Art, published in 1941 by the Illinois Federal Works Agency. Although the material falls out of the specific period of this work—the last decade—the index does include some interesting articles which provide historical perspective on the contemporary situation. Its main value lies in its listing of possible subject headings for “Negro” art, an invaluable guide even today in researching black artists. As it is apparent from a glance at the current issues of the Art Index, and the Reader’s Guide to Periodical Literature, the term “Negro” is still used to designate black Americans. Until about 1965, the heading of “Art, Negro” in both of these publications included African art. In subsequent years, a differentiation is made between “Art, Negro (American),” and “Art, Negro (African).” The headings “Art, African,” or “Art, Afro-American (or Black)” may also be listed, but invariably they are cross-referenced with “Art, Negro, etc.” One would also consult headings under the specific art form, and occupations, e.g. “Photography (-ers),” “Sculpture (-ors),” “Film (makers) etc. Negro.” One must also look under such disparate headings as “Race,” “Discrimination,” “Minorities,” and “Negro(es)” for additional material on the visual arts.
The Layman’s Guide to Negro History, by Edwin Salk, (New York, 1966) includes a fair bibliography on art, and is also useful for its listing of organizations and libraries, etc., that possess collections of material on and by black Americans, as well as sources of visual materials such as films (strips), records, slides, etc. There is also a list of periodicals published on and by black Americans.
The Directory of Afro-American Sources, edited by Walter Schatz (New York, 1970) serves a similar function, being a comprehensive compilation of all the major holdings of information on blacks by state and city.
Contemporary Black Artists in America, Robert Doty’s catalogue to the Whitney Museum show of 1971, contains a bibliography compiled by Libby Seaberg and includes the important published works on black art, each containing extensive bibliographies (Porter, Locke, Dover, Hutson, etc.).
A SELECTIVE BIBLIOGRAPHY (Black authors, where known are indicated by ✻.)
General Books:
✻Butcher, Margaret J. The Negro in American Culture. New York, 1972, 2nd edition.
Compiled from the unfinished manuscripts of the late Alain Locke. Deals with the history and full range of expressive possibilities of black creativity in the chapter, “The Negro as Artist in American Art.”
✻Gayle, Addison, ed. The Black Aesthetic. New York, 1972.
Although the main focus of this book is literature, the stylistic definitions of “Blackness” are useful in reference to the visual arts.
✻Huggins, Nathan I. Harlem Renaissance. New York, 1971.
History of one of the most important episodes in black creativity. Although the period is earlier than the focus of this bibliography, it is required reading as many of the key figures are working today.
✻Perkins, Marion. Problems of the Black Artist. Free Black Press, 1971.
Art Books:
Atkinson, J. Edward, ed. Black Dimensions in Contemporary Art. New York, 1971.
Compendium of biographic material and examples of each artist’s work. Preface by Edward Spriggs, director of the Studio Museum in Harlem, and Introduction by David Driskell, chairman, Department of Art, Fisk University. Some bibliographic references.
✻Fax, Elton. Seventeen Black Artists. New York, 1971. Biographical portraits of each artist, interviewed by the author, himself an artist. Author examines relationship between artist’s environment and personal experiences, and his/her creations. Artists included: Norma Morgan, John Biggers, John Torres, Elizabeth Catlett, John Wilson, Lawrence Jones, Charles White, Eldzier Cortor, Rex Groeleigh, Charlotte Amevor, Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence, Roy de Carava, Faith Ringgold, Earl Hooks, James Lewis, and Benny Andrews.
✻Lewis, Samella S., and Ruth G. Waddy, eds. Black Artists on Art. Vol. II. Los Angeles, 1971.
Vol. I indexed in Doty, op. cit. Collection of examples of artists’ works with statements by each artist on art.
✻Lloyd, Tom, ed. Black Art Notes. New York, 1971. Collection of essays that started out as rebuttal to Doty’s catalogue, and developed into major statement on black art philosophy (Lloyd). Contributors: Melvin Dixon, Tom Lloyd, Imamu Amiri Baraka, Jeff Donaldson, Bing Davis, Ray Elkins, Francis and Val Gray Ward, and Babatunde Folayemi.
Catalogues:
Anacostia Neighborhood Museum. Exhibition ’73. 1973.
Catalogue of annual exhibition by members of the D.C. Art Association. Important source of information on black artists in the Washington, D.C. area.
Black Motion: Exhibition Catalogue for the Multi-Media Art Exhibition at SCLC’s Black Expo ’72.
Includes painters, sculptors, photographers, film makers, and craftsmen, as well as a restorer of early American hooked rugs. Biographical material, and statements by some artists on their work, and the situation of black people in the arts.
Breeskin, Adelyn D. William Johnson: 1901–1970. National Collection of Fine Arts. Washington, D.C., 1971.
Catalogue of artist’s posthumous retrospective exhibition. Contains extensive bibliographic material.
5 +1 (Five Plus One). State University of New York at Stony Brook, 1969. Statements by Frank Bowling, Mel Edwards, Daniel Johnson, Al Loving, Jack Whitte, William T. Williams.
✻Gaither, Edmund B. Afro-American Artists: New York and Boston. Boston Museum of Fine Arts. 1970.
A relatively comprehensive sampling of black creativity covering at least two generations, and various stylistic affiliations.
✻Ghent, Henri. Afro-American Artists Since 1950. Brooklyn College Student Center, 1969.
— — — Huits Artistes Afro-Americains. Rath Museum, Geneva, 1971.
Exhibition’s organizer notes that selection of artists predicated on Art for Art’s Sake, and categorically states that “social protest” style was just not up to par to fulfill the purpose of the exhibition, i.e. to dispel the “savage,” exotic image of black Americans in Europe.
✻Greene, Carroll. Romare Bearden: The Prevalence of Ritual. Museum of Modern Art. New York, 1971.
Catalogue of Bearden’s one-man show. Bibliography useful for research on black artists in general, as is chronology of exhibitions.
Illinois Bell Telephone Company. Black American Artists/71. Introduction by Robert H. Glauber. 1971.
Catalogue of extensive exhibition that toured the Midwest provides at least one illustration of each artist’s work, a list of addresses of artists and their agents, and statements by several of the artists on “Being Black in 1971.”
Johnson, Diana F., Ellen H. Gross, and Arlene Corkery. Washington: Twenty Years. Baltimore Museum of Art. 1970.
Includes material on such artists as Alma Thomas and Sam Gilliam in a nonblack context.
Liberman, William S. The Sculpture of Richard Hunt. Museum of Modern Art. New York, 1971.
As in the cases of the Johnson and Bearden catalogues, there is good bibliographic and chronological material on black artists in general.
✻Rebuttal Catalogue: Catalogue of the Rebuttal Exhibition to the Whitney Exhibition. Acts of Art Gallery. New York, 1971.
Just what it is.
Schoener, Allen, ed. Harlem on My Mind: Cultural Capital of Black America; 1900–1968. Preface by Thomas Hoving, introduction by Candice van Ellison. New York, 1968.
Catalogue of notorious show. An important document within the total context of major institutions grappling with the issue of black art.
✻Studio Museum in Harlem. Afrocobra II. New York, 1971.
Contains statements by Jeff Donaldson and Cherlyn Wright on the inception and conception of AFROCOBRA—the aims of the artists, and the relationship between philosophy and style in their art. Also interestingly enough, notes how each artist deals with the economic realities of the art market.
— — — Eleven From California. 1972.
Pamphlet/catalogue of exhibit by group of California black artists including statements by the artists on their work.
Articles:
Akston, J.J., “Editorial: The Quest of Black Art,” Arts Magazine, May 1971, p. 5.
Author questions rationale for black shows, and indicates a personal solution by the regular inclusion of black artists in “regular” exhibitions.
“Artists Portray a Black Christ,” Ebony, April, 1971, pp. 176–178.
✻Bowling, Frank, “It’s Not Enough To Say Black Is Beautiful,” Art News, April 1971, pp. 53–55.
Black artist’s statement of reservations about “Black Art.” Well thought out.
✻Burroughs, Margaret G., “To Make a Painter Black,” in Black Seventies, Floyd Barbour, ed. Boston, 1972, pp. 129-137.
✻Dowell, J., et. al. “Politics,” Artforum, May, 1971, p. 12.
Statement by black artists censuring the Whitney Museum’s “Black Show,” citing tokenism and superficiality.
Fine, Elsa Honig, “The Afro-American Artist: A Search for Identity,” Art Journal, Winter, 1968-69, pp. 32–35.
Fine’s book by the same title is pending publication by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc.
— — — ,“Mainstream, Blackstream, and the Black Art Movement,” Art Journal, Summer 1971, pp. 374–375.
A two-part historical survey of the black artist in America culminating in an attempt to define the various stylistic inclinations circulating among black artists.
Frankenstein, Alfred, “The Paradox in Black Art,” San Francisco Chronicle, November 27, 1967, n.p.
Review of Minneapolis Institute Show: “30 Contemporary Black Artists.” Reviewer notes that the show “refuses to subscribe to any one of today’s innumerable idiomatic doctrines.”
✻Gaither, E.B., “Evolution of the Afro-American Artist,” Artist’s Proof, 1971, pp. 24-33.
Genauer, Emily, “Art and Artist,” New York Post, February 8, 1969, p. 46.
Survey of current “happenings” involving black artists: MMA symposium, Nordness Gallery exhibition, etc. Discussion of “Black Art” as a semantic reality.
Genovese, Eugene D., “Harlem on His Back: An Historian Looks at Hoving’s Harlem,” Artforum, February, 1969.
Useful critique of the show and consequences.
✻Ghent, Henri, “Black Creativity in Search of an Audience,” Art in America, May, 1970, p. 35.
Discusses relationship between African and Afro-American art in terms of form, content, and Geist. Also decries tendencies toward “social protest” art among black artists.
— — — , “Notes to the Young Black Artist: Revolution or Evolution?,”Art International, Summer, 1971, pp. 33-36.
Glueck, Grace, “Negroes’ Art Is What’s In Just Now,” New York Times, February 27, 1969, p. 34.
Interview with several black artists on their current situation.
“In a Black Bind,” Time Magazine, April 12, 1970.
Report on controversy over Whitney Show, the B.E.C.C. artists’ reactions.
Kay, Jane Holtz. “Artists as Social Reformers,” Art In America, January 1969, pp. 44-47.
Surveys artists who work for the community in the Boston area, including Dana Chandler, Gary Rickson, Calvin Burnett, John Wilson, and such organizations as the National Conference of Artists, the Boston Negro Artists Association, etc.
✻Morris, S., “Primitive Art of Clementine Hunter,” Ebony, May, 1969, pp. 144-148.
Article on black woman who is considered a “naive” painter.
Morrison; A., “New Surge in the Arts,” Ebony, August, 1967, pp. 34-61.
“Object: Diversity,” Time Magazine, April 6, 1970, pp. 80-87.
In special issue on Black America, 1970, this section surveys the black art scene and the more prominent personalities.
✻Pierre-Noel, L.J., “American Negro Art in Progress,” Negro History Bulletin, October, 1967, pp. 6–9.
✻Porter, James, “Contemporary Black American Art,” in The Negro Impact On Western Civilization, Joseph S. Roucek and Thomas Kiernan, eds. New York, 1970, pp. 489–506.
A superficial review of the history of black art, largely rehashed from his earlier works. But here he touches on issue of mutual influence between African and Afro-American art, and hints at the wealth of material on black art in Latin America, specifically Haitian Art. See ✻ Seldon Rodman’s Renaissance in Haiti, 1948.
Shirey, David, “An Afro-American Show That Isn’t,” New York Times, August 1, 1971.
A review of Ghent’s Rath Museum Show (see Catalogues) which presents the rather simple-minded view that Afro-American artists can only be so if they do “social protest” art—just what Ghent is refuting.
Smith, H.L., “Negro Artist in America Today,” Negro History Bulletin, February, 1964, pp. 111–112.
Steele, Mike, “The Black Artist—At Last, Whites Are Looking,” The Minneapolis Tribune, October 13, 1968.
Interesting, fairly objective review of the “30 Contemporary Black Artists” exhibition.
Turner, S., “Black Art Seminar,” Brooklyn Museum Annual 11, 1969–70, pp. 208-13.
Report on seminar on African and Afro-American art conducted with a group of black teenagers during the summer of 1969 at the Brooklyn Museum.
“Wall of Respect: Artists of Organization of Black American Culture Paint Mural in Chicago Ghetto,” Ebony, December, 1967, pp. 48-50.
Wilson, Edward, and ✻Porter, James, “CAA and Negro Colleges,” Art Journal, Winter 1968-69, p. 228.
Two letters that outline CAA’s responsibility to art departments in smaller black colleges with regard to slides, resources, information on black artists, symposiums, exhibitions, and internships for their students.
Organizations:
AFROCOBRA
c/o Jeff Donaldson, Chairman
Department of Art, Howard University
Washington, D.C.
Black Academy of Arts and Letters
475 Riverside Drive
New York, New York 10027
Black Arts, Inc.
P.O. Box 8038
Albany, New York 12201
Black Emergency Cultural Coalition
530 Bergen Ave.
Jersey City, New Jersey 07304
Boston Negro Artists Association
558 Massachusetts Ave.
Boston, Massachusetts
Harlem Cultural Council
170 West 130th Street
New York, New York 10027
Karamu House
2355 East 89th Street
Cleveland, Ohio 44106
National Conference of Artists
c/o Mrs. Jewel Simon, Treasurer
67 Ashby St. SW
Atlanta, Georgia
Union of Black Artists
6200 S. Drexel
Chicago, Illinois 60637
ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN PLANNING
The published material on black Americans in this context seems to stress concerns of both blacks and whites over the implications and consequences of “urban renewal” projects of various municipalities, as well as the exploitation of ghetto communities by large universities located in their midst as they embark on expansion programs. “Advocacy planning” is the catchword, and points to the new awareness on the part of some architects that they do have responsibilities to the public good when private gain threatens to intrude on or endanger that public good. The writer could discern no “black architecture,” but rather an encouragement of participation by ghetto communities in shaping their environment.
Articles:
“Afram Mini-Mall,” Progressive Architecture, June, 1970, p. 54.
“ARCH: Black Advocates,” Progressive Architecture, September, 1968, pp. 107-111.
Aumente, J., “Urban Design with Soul: Urban Design Development Group, Inc., Detroit,”Architectural Forum, December 1969, pp. 44–45.
Berkeley, E.P., “Minorities in the Profession,” Progressive Architecture, June, 1970, pp. 56-59.
Brooks, M.P., “Urban Social Policy: Race and the Education of the Planner,” American Institute of Planners Journal, September, 1968, pp. 275–278.
“The Cities, The Black, and The Poor,”American Institute of Planners Journal, March, 1969, pp. 68–112.
Finrow, J., “Community Involvement: Pros and Cons,” A/A Journal, April 1970, pp. 55–57.
Includes a “Black Minority Statement” calling for a “hard definition of advocacy planning,” and condemning exploitation of black communities as training laboratories for white architectural students.
Galantay, E., “Black New Towns: The Fourth Alternative,” Progressive Architecture, August, 1968, pp. 126–131.
Linn, Karl, “White Solutions Won’t Work in Black Neighborhoods,” Landscape Architecture, October 1968, pp. 23–50.
Marcus, P. “Integration and the Planner,” American Institute of Planners Journal, March, 1969, pp. 113–117.
✻Nash, Robert J. “A Black Architect Speaks Frankly,” A/A Journal, October 1968, pp. 36, 94, 96.
Discusses the fact that black ghettoes are controlled from the outside, and recommends methods for white architects to contact black communities.
Tucker, P., “Poor Peoples’ Plan,” Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, January 1969, pp. 265–279.
Describes the work of ARCH.
Organizations:
ARCH (Architects Renewal Committee in Harlem)
221 West 116th Street
New York, New York 10026
Black Architects Collaborative (Chicago)
The New Thing Art and Architecture Center
1181 Columbia Road
Washington, D.C. 20009
BLACK WOMEN ARTISTS
The emergence of black women artists as a distinct interest group within the black art “phenomenon” is a recent development. A double minority in the art world, black women artists first manifested themselves as a radical and specifically feminist force during the Art Strike in the summer of 1970. Under the leadership of New York artist Faith Ringgold, WSABA —Women, Students, and Artists for Black Art Liberation—protested the exclusion of women, blacks, and black women from the “alternative” Biennale show that was to be set up at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. From these events also grew the subsequent Women Artists Liberation consciousness (Faith Ringgold in a telephone conversation with the author, January 16, 1973.)
There have also been several exhibitions around the theme of black women artists. “Afro-American Women in Art: Their Achievements in Sculpture and Painting” has been recorded in Doty, op. cit. Where We At, an organization of Black Women Artists have exhibited at the Bed-Stuy Restoration Corporation in Brooklyn, New York (“Where We At,” May 12–June 20, 1972), and also at Gallery 1199 (“The Black Woman: Genesis of a New Nation,” September 22–October 24, 1972). “A New Vitality in Art: The Black Woman” was shown at the John and Nash Warbe Gallery at Mount Holyoke College from April 6 to April 20, 1972. The most recent exhibition, “Black Matri-Images” was on view at the Art Gallery of Morgan State College in Baltimore, Maryland until January 15, 1973.
Catalogues:
Garrison, G. and Long, P., A New Vitality in Art: The Black Woman. Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass., 1972.
Articles:
Baker, Elizabeth C., “Pickets on Parnassus,” Art News, September 1970, pp. 31–33, 64–65.
Chronicles the Art Strike in New York in the summer of 1970, and the emergence of WSABAL to protest the discrimination against blacks, women, and students. Also covers various issues and proposals with regard to blacks, ghettoes, and art that were current at the time.
Lyons, H., “Found Women,” MS Magazine, January, 1973, pp. 45-55, 66-67. Includes a short profile of Faith Ringgold as an activist, and a representative of black women artists as an “interest” group.
Muller, V., “Liberating the Artists: Black Women Take Over,” Women: A Journal of Liberation, Fall, 1970, pp. 46-47.
“Faith Ringgold’s opposition to the Venice Biennale demanded that 50 per cent of all group shows should be women, 50 per cent of that black women, and 25 per cent students.” (From “Feminism in the Arts: An Interim Bibliography” by A.R. Krasilovsky in Artforum June, 1972, p. 74.)
Singleton, John, “The Black Female Artist: A Self Portrait in Anger,” Daily News, New York, June 18, 1972, 1K, 3K.
Review of exhibition of “Where We At” at the Bed-Stuy Restoration Corporation. Includes interview with Faith Ringgold on Black Women Artists, and rebuttal by Henri Ghent against “separatist” black art groups.
The current espousal of art and artists in the prisons has prompted outcries against the neglect of women, and especially black and Puerto Rican female inmates. “Out of the Prisons,” an exhibition at the Community Church Gallery (January 17–February 3, 1973) is the first prison exhibition to include women (conversation with Tecla and Michele Wallace, January 15, 1973).
CRAFTS
The first exhibition devoted specifically to black craftsmen was held at the Mills College Art Gallery in Oakland, California (February 15–March 8, 1970). The Studio Museum in New York City also mounted an exhibition of works by black craftsmen—“Handicrafted”—January 30–March 26, 1972 (featuring Camille Billups, Al Smith, and the Fannins). Aside from material on individuals, the only recent work dealing with black craftsmen as a group is Judith W. Chase’s Afro-American Art and Craft. This work also seeks to relate the tradition of contemporary black craftsmen to their anonymous slave and African predecessors.
Books:
Chase, Judith Wragg. Afro-American Art and Craft. New York, 1971.
Although the emphasis is on slave craftsmen, there is some interesting material on contemporary black craftsmen, working in weaving, jewelry, stained-glass, ceramics, etc. The bibliography also includes good items on black artists in general.
(Lewis and Waddy’s Black Artists on Art, op. cit., also contains work by black craftsmen.)
Articles:
“Bootstrap Operation As a Source for Exceptional Handscreened Fabrics,” Interiors, September, 1970, p. 12.
Kaufman, Alma, “Stain-Glass Windows Go Modern with Abstract Art,” The Cleveland Plain Dealer, April 1, 1972, P. 11B.
Article on Douglas Phillips, a black artist who runs a successful stained-glass studio.
Jackson, Peggy, “Sculptured Reality,” Essence, July, 1972, pp. 50–51.
Interview with Camille Billups, black woman sculptor-ceramicist.
Meisel, Alan, “Letter from San Francisco,” Craft Horizons, May, 1970, pp. 65-67.
Includes a review of “California Black Craftsmen” exhibit at Mills College.
See Thompson, Robert, “African Influence on the Art of the United States,” in Black Studies in the University: A Symposium, A. Robinson, C. Foster, D. Ogilvie, eds. Yale U. Press, 1969, for a discussion of early black craftsmen.
FILM AND PHOTOGRAPHY
The black American in film has been treated from two angles. The first is concerned with the image of blacks in American films, and the second with blacks as film makers. These two considerations are not necessarily exclusive, and, in fact, most of the published material will deal with both concerns. The political and economic ramifications of blacks in recent films has tended to obscure specific considerations of cinemagraphic esthetics, but the reader will be able to recognize that this consideration is present in all of the discussions.
A black esthetic in photography is usually defined through choice and treatment of a specifically black subject matter. Since such a choice is obviously not limited to black photographers, the reader would do well to consult Black Creation Magazine, which regularly features photographic essays by black photographers, as well as consistent, well-developed articles on blacks in photography, as well as film.
Film Books:
Mapp, Edward. Blacks in American Films. Scarecrow Press. 1972.
Film Articles:
“Blacks Against Shaft: The Formation of a Coalition Against Blaxploitation,” Newsweek, August 28, 1972, p. 88.
Goldsmith, B. “No More Workin’ For the Man: Black Films Are Here to Stay,” Harper’s Bazaar, August, 1972, pp. 98–100.
✻Mason, J., “Black Cinema Expo ’72: Black Cinema Library Research Center,” Ebony, May, 1972, pp. 151–154.
— — —,“The New Films: Culture or Con Game,” Ebony, December, 1972, pp. 60–68.
Merrill, M., “Black Panthers in the New Wave,” Film Culture, September, 1972, pp. 134-145.
✻Micheaux, O., “Black Film: ‘God’s Stepchildren’, 1938,” New Yorker Magazine, April 18, 1970, pp. 34–35.
Schickel, R., “Films for Blacks,” Life Magazine, June 9, 1972, p. 20.
Scobie, W.I., “Superspade’s Revenge,” National Review, May 12, 1972, pp. 539–540.
Film Festivals Featuring Black Film Makers:
“The Black Film,” Jewish Museum, New York City, March 24-May 14, 1970.
A historical survey of films made by blacks, including important forerunners as Paul Robeson, Oscar Micheaux. The notes and research from this festival have been lodged at the Schomberg Library Collection in New York City.
“Bout Us: A Festival of Black Films and Black Filmmakers,” Studio Museum Film Workshop, New York City, November 21-December 12, 1970.
“Film Festival of Works By Young Black Filmmakers,” American Museum of Natural History, New York City, June 4 and 11, 1970.
Photography Books:
✻Higgins, C. and Mc Dougall, H., Black Woman. New York, 1970.
A photographic essay on the black woman by a black photographer.
✻Hughes, L., and DeCarava, R., The Sweet Flypaper of Life. New York, 1955.
A portrait of the lifestyle of black people with photographs by Roy DeCarava, and the text by Langston Hughes.
✻McGhee, Reginald, ed., The World of lames Van Derzee: A Visual Record of Black Americans. New York, 1969.
Van Derzee is one of the early black photographers so this work is important. There is an interview with the photographer in which he describes his start in photography, and the techniques he employed in his first works.
Photography Articles:
“Beautiful People of James Van Derzee,” Ebony, October, 1970, pp. 85-88+.
Coleman, A.D., “Roy DeCarava: Through Black Eyes,” Pop Photography, April 1970, pp. 68–71.
Review of DeCarava’s one-man show at the Studio Museum. The photographer has been called the “first black man to choose by intent to document the black and human experience in America . . . the first to devote serious attention to the black esthetic as it relates to photography and the black experience in America,” (James Hinton, photographer, exhibition note)
“Harlem: A Photographic Report by a Group of Young Negro Photographers,” Camera, June, 1966, pp. 4-25.
MUSEUMS AND GALLERIES
Books:
American Association of Museums. The Belmont Report: A Report to the Federal Council on the Arts and Humanities by a Special Committee of the AAM, 1969.
Includes report on programs for the “disadvantaged.”
— — —. Museums: Their New Audience. A Report to the Department of Housing and Urban Development by a Special Committee of the AAM, 1972.
Survey of phenomenon of “inner-city” museums, neighborhood museums, storefront museums, and “outreach” programs of established museums. Developed to meet the demands of an urban population which felt alienated from large museums, these became vehicles by which collections of large museums were brought to the people in a relevant way. The report selects 20 prototypes and describes their activities. Bibliography includes funding sources and biographies of individuals involved in the preparation of this report.
Articles:
Bailey, P., “Black Art’s Amazing Fund Raiser,” Ebony, June, 1970, pp. 70-72+.
Report on activities of Elma Lewis of Boston, and her drive to raise money for a cultural center which became the National Center of Afro-American Artists.
Potamkin, M.P., “Is Outreach a Cop-Out?,” Museum News, December, 1972, p. 25.
Examines the phenomenon and makes recommendations.
Schwartz, B., “Museums: Art for Whose Sake?,” Ramparts Magazine, June, 1971, pp. 38-49.
Chronicles the adventures of several “established” museums into the realm of “relevancy” and “relating.”
Museums:
Black History Exhibit Center
106 N. Main St.
Hempstead, New York
DuSable Museum of Black History and Art
3806 South Michigan Avenue
Chicago, Illinois, 6065
Margaret Burroughs, director
James Van Derzee Institute
103 East 125th Street
New York, N.Y.
Reginald McGhee, director
Helio Museum
Gates Ave.
Brooklyn, N.Y.
The Museum of Afro-American History
Smith Court
Boston, Massachusetts, 02114
Byron Rushing, director
Museum of the National Center for Afro-American Artists
122 Elm Street
Dorchester, Massachusetts
Edmund Barry Gaither, curator
Storefront Museum
162-02 Liberty Ave.
Jamaica, New York
Tom Lloyd, director
Studio Museum in Harlem
2033 Fifth Ave.
New York, N.Y.
Edward Spriggs, director
Galleries:
Acts of Art
15 Charles Street
New York N.Y. 10014
Nigel Jackson, director
Artist House
131 Prince Street
New York, N.Y.
Ornette Coleman, director
Brockman Gallery
4334 Degnan Blvd.
Los Angeles, California
Alonzo and Dale Davis, director
Cinque Gallery
442 Lafayette Street
New York, N.Y.
Romare Bearden, Ernest Crichlow, Norman Lewis, directors
Contemporary Craft Gallery
1019 S. Redondo Boulevard
Los Angeles, California
Samella Lewis, director
Experience Art Gallery
578 Myrtle Ave.
Brooklyn, New York
Steve Bowser and Warren Parker, directors
Genesis II Gallery
509 Cathedral Parkway
New York, New York 10025
Andi Owens and John Tracy, directors
Howard University Gallery
Department of Art, Howard University
Washington, D.C. 20001
Albert Carter, curator
Many of the larger black colleges have art galleries which regularly host exhibitions by black artists. Consult the Schatz book or the National Conference of Artists for further information.
PAX
471 Jefferson Ave.
Brooklyn, New York 12221
Studio Gallery
172-03 119th Ave.
Jamaica, New York
Walter Cade, director
Weusi Nyumba Ya Sanaa
158 W. 132nd Street
New York, N.Y.
The foregoing are all institutions founded and/or directed by blacks and are sources for information on black artists.
AUDIOVISUAL SOURCES
Wray, W., Sloan, W., and MacDonald, B., Black Films: A Selected List, Prepared for the Black Films Workshop at the New York Public Library, June 5 and 6, 1970.
Lists films of and by blacks as well as distribution houses.
Films:
Alvin Smith, a film by Jan Peterson of the Collegiate School, 1971.
Shows the artist at work.
Black Artists, distributed by Afro-Graphics.
Includes interviews with John Riddle, Samella Lewis, and William Pajaud.
Black Artists in America, a film by Oakley N. Holmes, 151 Union Rd., Spring Valley, N.Y. 10977, 1971.
Five, a film produced by Milton Meltzer and Alvin Yudkoff of Silvermine Films, Inc., sponsored by Seagram Distillers, 1971.
Includes Barbara Chase-Ribaud, Romare Bearden, Betty Blayton-Taylor, Charles White, Richard Hunt.
Howardena Pindell, a video tape made by Hermine Fried (contact A.I.R. Gallery, 97 Wooster Street, New York City), December, 1972.
John Outterbridge: Black Artist, a film distributed by AC I, 1970.
Richard Hunt, Sculptor, a film distributed by EBEC.
Shows Hunt’s use of Chicago as an inspiration for his work.
Right On: Be Free, distributed by Trend Films, 1971.
Documents efforts of black communities to involve their people in the arts, including poetry, music, dance, and visual art.
These films have not been seen by the author as of publication. Information comes from press releases, flyers, etc.
Slides:
The following institutions, etc. have slides on black art that may be purchased or rented.
Afro-American Slide Depository, The Department of Art, University of South Alabama, Mobile, Alabama 36608. Att: James E. Colon and James E. Kennedy
Slides of Afro-American art from the collections of several institutions (Alabama State University, Brooklyn Museum, Carver Museum, Museum of the City of New York, Dintenfass Gallery, Frederick Douglass Institute, Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Archives, National Collection of Fine Arts, National Portrait Gallery, Pennsylvania Academy of Art, San Francisco Museum, Taft Museum, Isaac Hathaway Museum) may be purchased separately or in sets. Catalogue is available.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Slide Library, Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street, New York, New York 10028 Att: Mrs. Margaret Nolan
Slide sets on Jacob Lawrence, and the Minneapolis Institute show “30
Contemporary Black Artists” for rental. There is a booklet listing sources for slides.
National Archives, Audiovisual Division, Washington, D.C.
The holdings of the Harmon Foundation are now housed here, including records, papers, and transparencies and photos of black artists and their works. Slides can be ordered from the prints in the files. It should be noted that the Harmon Foundation Collection also includes several films on black American artists, and footage on art programs in black colleges, and exhibitions.
National Center for Afro-American Artists, Boston, Massachusetts
A slide collection is being assembled of all the works by all black artists in the United States. Contact directly to ascertain the availability of the collection.
Tapes:
National Archives, Washington D.C., is compiling an Artists Archives with tapes of interviews with various artists. Contact Paul Cummings.
Hatch-Billups Studio, 54 E. 11th Street, New York City
Under the aegis of City College, Camille Billups and James Hatch are gathering taped interviews with black artists, including singers, playwrights, etc. These tapes are available at cost. In preparation is a slide library of Afro-American artists, as well as files of letters, articles, flyers, etc. These are available to persons researching black artists.
See also Salk, op. cit. for sources of audiovisual material.
PERIODICALS
The following are periodicals devoted to the subject of blacks in the arts:
ABA: A Journal of Affairs of Black Artists, published by the National Center of Afro-American Artists, 122 Elm Street, Dorchester, Massachusetts.
A quarterly journal with critical/art historical articles, projects and proposals of interest to black artists, book reviews, directory of educational and institutional resources, calendar of exhibitions, list of black-owned galleries, directory of black museum personnel.
Black Creation Magazine, a quarterly magazine published by the Institute of Afro-American Affairs of New York University, 10 Washington Place, New York.
Includes articles on art, film, photography, and deals with the question of a black esthetic.
Black Photographers Annual, 1973, published annually by Black Photographers Annual, Inc., 55 Hicks St., Brooklyn, New York. Works by black photographers across the country.
Black Shades: A Black Art Newsletter. Contact F.W. Faxon Library Subscription Center, 15 Southwest Park, Westwood, Mass. 02090 for information.
There are several other black publications not devoted to the arts, which may carry features on black artists, exhibitions, etc.:
Bibliographic Survey: The Negro in Print, published every other month except July by the Negro Bibliographic and Research Center, Inc., 117 R St. NE, Washington, D.C. 20002.
Includes current published material on black Americans.
Black Collegian Magazine, 3217 Melpomene Ave., New Orleans, Louisiana 70125.
Deals with black issues, including art.
Black Scholar Magazine, P.O. Box 31245, San Francisco, California 94131.
A journal of black studies, published ten times a year.
Ebony Magazine, published monthly by Johnson Publishing Co., 820 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Illinois 60605.
Encore Magazine, published monthly by Encore Communications, Inc., 572 Madison Ave., New York, New York 10022.
Essence Magazine, published monthly by the Hollingsworth Group, Inc., 102 East 30th St., New York, New York 10016.
Jet Magazine, published monthly by Johnson Publishing Co.
Tuesday Magazine, monthly supplement to several papers nationwide, published by Tuesday Publications, Inc., 625 N. Michigan, Chicago, Illinois 60611.
UNPUBLISHED MATERIAL
There is much “loose” literature on black artists which has proliferated with the current movement. Manifestoes, meetings minutes, flyers, etc., as well as clippings from newspapers, and magazines are available which contain valuable information. The following is a listing of individuals and organizations willing to coordinate requests for information. The author recommends that interested parties communicate with these people by mail to avoid straining resources:
Baltimore Museum of Art
Art Museum Drive
Baltimore, Maryland 21218
Has a beginning listing of black artists in America.
Benny Andrews
31 Beekman St.
New York City
Files on individuals and organizations, and institutions, who have been involved in black art over the last decade.
Boston Public Library
Boston, Massachusetts 02117
Att: William Lewis and Theresa D. Cederholm This institution is in the process of compiling a directory of black American artists for publication. It will include bibliographic as well as biographic material.
Chambas Educational Service
55 Chambers Street
New York City
Att: Pearl Bowser
A subsidiary of Chamba Productions, a black film production company directed by St. Clair Bourne, this division is the nucleus of research and compilation of material on black film makers.
College Art Association
16 E. 52nd Street
New York, New York 10022
Could be contacted concerning the availability of abstracts of papers presented on black art at the annual CAA Conference, especially the 1970 conference in Washington, D.C., and the 1973 conference in New York City.
Schomberg Collection of Negro Literature and History
103 West 135th Street
New York, New York
Mrs. Jean Hutson, curator
Yale University Library, Rare Books and Manuscript Division
New Haven, Connecticut
A Clippings Collection on black artists has recently been started.
Lowery S. Sims is a black art historian in the Department of Community Programs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
