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Perceptual Drift

Black Art and an Ethics of Looking
By Key Jo Lee
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Perceptual Drift presents a groundbreaking approach to understanding Black art and the historical and contemporary experiences of Black lives. The book features essays by prominent Black scholars who examine four key works from the Cleveland Museum of Art's collection. Through materialist approaches, the contributors challenge traditional art historical narratives marked by social and racial inequities. The concept of “perceptual drift,” introduced by Key Jo Lee, offers a novel way to engage with Blackness as a tangible presence in art and scholarship. Each chapter explores significant artworks by Jack Whitten, Lorna Simpson, Ellen Gallagher, and Simone Leigh, revealing deep meanings and previously untold histories.
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Format: Hardback
$8399
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This title is ideal for readers interested in contemporary Black art, art history, and cultural criticism. It will appeal to scholars, students, and general readers looking to deepen their understanding of art through lenses of race, materiality, and social justice.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

A powerful reframing of the study of Black art and the historical and contemporary status of Black lives

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

A powerful reframing of the study of Black art and the historical and contemporary status of Black lives

Perceptual Drift offers a new interpretive model drawing on four key works of Black art in the Cleveland Museum of Art’s collection. In its chapters, leading Black scholars from multiple disciplines deploy materialist approaches to challenge the limits of canonic art history, rooted as it is in social and racial inequities.

The opening essay by Key Jo Lee introduces the concept of “perceptual drift”: a means of exploring the matter of Blackness, or Blackness as matter in art and scholarship. Christina Sharpe examines Rho I (1977) by Jack Whitten; Lee explores Lorna Simpson’s Cure/Heal (1992); Robin Coste Lewis analyzes Ellen Gallagher’s Bouffant Pride (2003); and Erica Moiah James considers Simone Leigh’s Las Meninas (2019).

This approach seeks to transform how art history is written, introduce readers to complex objects and theoretical frameworks, illuminate meanings and untold histories, and simultaneously celebrate and open new entry points into Black art.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780300263923

Publisher: Yale University Press

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 22 November 2022

Country: United States

Imprint: Yale University Press

Illustration: 53 color + b-w illus.

Contributors:

  • Contributions by Christina Sharpe
  • Contributions by Erica Moiah James
  • Contributions by Robin Coste Lewis

Audience: Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Width: 210.0mm

Height: 298.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 80

Collections

Arts & Culture Education & Reference Key Jo Lee Non-Fiction

About the Author

Key Jo Lee is director of academic affairs and associate curator of special projects at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

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