What Is African Art?: A Short History

This book explores the invention and development of African art as an art historical category, tracing its evolution from the colonial formation to the post- and decolonial reconfiguration. It discusses the role of museums, collectors, and photography in disseminating visual cultures as relations of power and the shift toward contemporary art and Black Atlantic studies.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 256 pages
Publication date: 06 December 2022
Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

This book examines the invention and development of African art as an art historical category. It starts with a simple question: What do we mean when we talk about African art? By confronting the historically shifting answers to this question, Peter Probst identifies "African art" as a conceptual vessel that manifests wider societal transformations.

What Is African Art? covers three key stages in the fields history. Starting with the late nineteenth through the mid-twentieth centuries, the book first discusses the colonial formation of the field by focusing on the role of museums, collectors, and photography in disseminating visual cultures as relations of power. It then explores the remaking of the field at the dawn of African independence with the shift toward contemporary art and the rise of Black Atlantic studies in the 1970s and 1980s. Finally, it examines the post- and decolonial reconfiguration of the field driven by questions of representation, repair, and restitution.

The book argues that African art is not a monolithic entity but rather a complex and multifaceted phenomenon that reflects the diverse cultures, histories, and experiences of the continent. It explores the ways in which African artists have used their work to challenge dominant narratives, promote social justice, and express their cultural identities. The book also examines the historical and political contexts in which African art has been produced and consumed, including the impact of colonialism, slavery, and the post-colonial era.

Through its comprehensive analysis, What Is African Art? provides a valuable contribution to the field of art history and offers a new perspective on the rich and complex history of African art. It will be of interest to scholars, students, and anyone with an interest in the visual cultures of Africa and beyond.

Dimension: 229 x 152 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780226793153
Edition number: 1