Figuring History: Robert Colescott, Kerry James Marshall, Mickalene Thomas - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0300233892 ISBN 13: 9780300233896

Publisher: Yale University Press, 2018

Synopsis

Contemporary artists Robert Colescott (1925–2009), Kerry James Marshall (b. 1955), and Mickalene Thomas (b. 1971) are distinguished by their attention to a history of representation, which they re-visit and revise to reflect on individual and collective Black experience. Equally engaged with social and political histories, and the history of art, Colescott, Marshall, and Thomas have created works that at times poignantly and satirically critique dominant narratives and posit alternatives. By considering these artists together, this thought-provoking book expands our understanding of contemporary history painting, a genre first defined during the 17th century and known for didactic paintings that often depicted Biblical or mythological subjects, and expressed the tastes and narratives of a ruling class. Colescott, Marshall, and Thomas marry appreciation of these traditional forms of representation to a deep understanding of contemporary American culture to create insightful works that disrupt historic narratives and read canonic art history against the grain.

About this title

Book Description

This insightful consideration of three influential artists redefines our understanding of contemporary history painting and invites us to rethink dominant historical narratives.

About the Author

Catharina Manchanda is Jon and Mary Shirley Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Seattle Art Museum. Lowery Stokes Sims is curator emerita at the Museum of Arts and Design. Jacqueline Francis is associate professor at California College of the Arts.

Edition details

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 0300233892
• ISBN 13: 9780300233896
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 96
• Editor: Manchanda Catharina