African American Artists
For a good overview of the history and contributions of African American artists to the visual arts, check out the following reference books:
African Americans in the Visual Arts by Steven Otfinoski (Cabell Reference N6538 .N5 O86 2003) is a biographical dictionary covering more than 190 artists. Each entry concentrates on the events of the subject's life which have informed or affected his or her artistic output. The entries also include overviews of major works and a brief bibliography of further reading on each artist.
A History of African-American Artists, from 1792 to the present by Romare Bearden and Harry Henderson (Cabell Reference N6538 .N5 B38 1993) is a comprehensive survey of African American artists from the late eighteenth century through the post World War II era. Full color and black and white illustrations accompany the text, which attempts to uncover the hidden history of these artists, long neglected by traditional American art survey texts.
To search for other books and videos on African American artists in the VCU Libraries type in "African American art" as a subject in the Catalog. Titles that may be of interest include:
- African American art: past and present (videorecording). Cabell Media and Reserves Film and Video N6538.N5 A34 1992
- Farrington, Lisa E. Creating Their Own Image: the History of African American Women Artists. Cabell Stacks N6538.N5 F27 2005
- Metropolitan Museum of Art. African-American Artists, 1929-1945: Prints, Drawings, and Paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Cabell Stacks N6538.N5 M47 2003