Black Art
Definition and Overview
Black art constitutes a very diverse legacy, although many observers have a habit of generalizing what black art is. We are talking about a continent that is filled with civilizations, people, and societies, each of which has a special culture. Defining black art also requires that you take into consideration the art of the African Diasporas, which includes the art of African Americans.
Thematic elements
Despite all the diversity, there are some artistic themes that are unifying in nature when you are considering the totality of the African continent from the visual culture. Black art contains 5 thematic elements as follows:
Emphasis on the human body – the human body has always been the focal point of most African art.
Emphasis on the performing arts – much of traditional African art that you find is crafted for use in performing contexts instead of static ones. It is an extension of the three- dimensionality and utilitarianism of traditional African art.
Emphasis on sculpture – African artists have always favored three-dimensional art forms over two-dimensional ones.
Nonlinear scaling – oftentimes, a small portion of an African art design will be similar in appearance to a larger one. This is also described in fractal geometry terms.
Visual abstraction – rather than favoring naturalistic representation, African art tends to favor visual abstraction. This is because black art generalizes stylistic norms.
Black art history
Black art has been influenced by cultural backgrounds of Africa, Europe, and the US. The more common or traditional black art of the African-American community includes:
- woodcarving
- quilting
- pottery
- plastic arts
- paintings
- basket weaving
Black art has been a vital contribution to US art and has played a significant role in it from its early origins in the slave community to the end of the 20th century.
From the 17th to 19th century in the US South, black art came in a wide diversity of forms including the following:
- ceramic vessels
- quilts
- small drums
- wrought-iron figures
Most of these black art pieces displayed the characteristics and similarities of Central and West African crafts, the primary areas of the continent where many skilled African artists were captured as slaves and brought to the US. During the slavery period, white slave owners purchased these African artisans.
Artists such as the Baltimore portrait painter Joshua Johnson and the New England engraver Scipio Moorhead created black art that displayed Western European overtones. Many slave owners allowed these artists to keep some of the wages they earned from their crafts. In many cases, they were able to save enough money to buy their own freedom as well as the freedom for their children and spouses.
Black Art in Print
African American Expression offers a wide selection of Black art depicted on a variety of products and greeting cards.
Get tips for finding Black art and start collecting today.
Category : Black Art
African-American figurines are some of the more popular and sought after collectible art items that you can include in your collection or give as gifts. Collectible art such as these figurines have always been a primary favorite among those individuals who enjoy collecting African-American art. The primary reason for this is because it is a great way to bring smaller pieces of art into the home as well as the perfect way to display endearing and sweet characters that everyone will fall in love with.
It’s no surprise that African-American figurines keep gaining in popularity with every day that passes. Some of the most recognizable collectibles of African-American art are these figurines. However, the more traditional African-American art includes many diverse items such as:
- woodcarvings
- quilting
- pottery and sculpture
- plastic arts
- paintings
- basket weavings
As a comparison, African-American figurines are known for their appeal and popularity in similar fashion that Walt Disney figurines have been recognized. His cartoons and movies naturally led to many series of collectible figurines that have depicted his classic characters in all types of mediums such as pewter and porcelain. So it stands to reason that the same holds true with African-American figurines.
Figurines are so much more than art
Granted, African-American figurines are excellent pieces of art and have high collectible values in many cases, but they also make the perfect gift for the person who has an extreme interest in African-American art. In the Western World today, African-American figurines are some of the more popular and sought after pieces in the sculpture industry. Additionally, they exhibit the 5 thematic elements that African-American is characterized by which includes:
Visual abstraction – African-American art tends to favor visual abstraction rather than favoring naturalistic representation. This due to the fact that black art generalizes stylistic norms.
Nonlinear scaling – this is typically described in fractal geometry. In this case, a small portion of an African art design will be similar in appearance to a larger one.
Emphasis on the performing arts – most of the traditional African-American art that exists today is crafted for use in performance contexts rather than static ones. It is considered an extension of three-dimensionality and utilitarianism that exists in traditional African-American art.
Emphasis on the human body – African-American art has always placed an emphasis on the human body and uses it as the primary focal point.
Emphasis on sculpture – throughout history, African and African-American artists have always favored art forms that are three-dimensional instead of two-dimensional.
Despite all the diversity that is common with African-American, these themes will always be found in African and African-American artwork, no matter what type it is.
Visit the following link to view a variety of beautiful African American figurines: http://www.black-gifts.com/product/home-decor/figurines/
Before we can talk about black art, Black-gifts.com would like to give you an overview of Black History Month and then we will discuss the history of black art. Our writing staff hopes that you enjoy this information. (more…)
Category : Black Art &Black History Month &Blog
