Race, Identity, and Representation in African American Art

Class Description

This seminar explores the multifaceted contributions of African American artists from the early years of the United States to the present. Beginning with quilts and pottery created by enslaved people during the early years of the Republic, we move chronologically through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, including the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Arts movement, among others, studying diverse media including painting, sculpture, photography, and installation art. We will examine the works of African American artists within the social and historical contexts in which they were produced; how their works both aligned with and critiqued conventions of white artists; and the ways in which their works both reflected and shaped attitudes toward gender and race in the United States. Utilizing theoretical approaches that draw upon critical categories such as gender, race, and class will afford us the opportunity to further broaden our understanding of Black artists, their work, and critical and popular reception of Black art.

Tricia Smith Scanlan received her PhD in American Visual Culture and African Art at Indiana University. She has worked at the Indiana University Art Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago and has taught at Indiana and DePaul universities, as well as at the Newberry Library.

All virtual classes are recorded and made available to participants registered in the class. These recordings are password-protected and available for up to two weeks after the class ends.

What to Expect

Format: Virtual

Class Capacity: 24

Class Style: Mix of lecture and discussion; participation encouraged

Materials List

Required

• Digital Course Packet

First Reading

Please read the following selections for our first class meeting, available in digital course packet:

• Tanya Sheehan, “A Time and a Place: Rethinking Race in American Art History,” in A Companion to American Art, ed. John Davis, Jennifer A. Greenhill, and Jason D. LaFountain (Chichester, West Sussex, UK: John Wiley & Sons, 2015), 49-67.
• Maude Southwell Wahlman, “African Symbolism in Afro-American Quilts,” African Arts 20 (November 1986): 68-76.
• J.W. Joseph, “‘…All of Cross’—African Potters, Marks, and Meanings in the Folk Pottery of the Edgefield District, South Carolina,” Historical Archaeology 45, no. 2 (2011): 134-155.

A Brief Syllabus

1. Introduction: Considering Race and the Legacy of Plantation Life
2. The Nineteenth Century Part I: The Early Republic and Antebellum Eras
3. The Nineteenth Century Part II: From Slavery to “Freedom”
4. The Twentieth Century Part I: The New Negro Movement and the Harlem Renaissance
5. The Twentieth Century Part II: Cultural Identity in African American Art
6. Black Arts Movement and Contemporary African American Art

Cost and Registration

6 Sessions, $245 ($220.50 for Newberry members, seniors, and students). Learn about becoming a member.

We offer our classes at three different price options: Regular ($245), Community Supported ($225), and Sponsor ($265). Following the models of other institutions, we want to ensure that our classes are accessible to a wider audience while continuing to support our instructors. You may choose the price that best fits your situation when registering through Learning Stream.

To register multiple people for this class, please go through the course calendar in Learning Stream, our registration platform. When you select the course and register, you’ll be prompted to add another registrant.

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