Crossing the Border: Russian Research Librarians and the Black Art Project

On June 8, 2009, George was involved with a Congressional funded program through the Open World Leadership Center that included representatives from various types of libraries in Russia. This project was proposed and led by Kristen Regina, Host Coordinator and Head Librarian at the Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens (Washington, DC). The goal of this program was to help art librarians create a broader audience by incorporating the study of specialized art libraries with general and public libraries, ultimately crossing the border of traditional art readership to inspire new readers. George, as an art librarian, was involved because of the successful grass root strides that he has made in documenting the efforts and accomplishments of black (African American) artists through the publication of the Guide to Black Art Exhibitions.

It was an enlightening and engaging experience for the visiting delegation, as well as the presenter and the American host. George demonstrated in his talk/presentation how the Guide to Black Art Exhibitions evolved as a publication, focusing on the use of technology and particularly the Internet to explore new ground in discovering untapped information and culling it together into some meaningful way to create the annual Guide. Further discussions centered on a marketing strategy that included how to reach out to a broad audience via simple and low-cost means such as email and the web.

Although, the topic was not based on Russian culture or history, the template used for the success of the Guide could be replicated in any culture. There was engaging dialogue during and after the presentation. This was yet another way to develop a network of contacts between Russian and US art librarians for professional collaboration, problem solving, and possible future joint research.

The delegation was presented copies of the Guide to Black Art Exhibitions and they presented George with a copy of Alexander Pushkin's In Hopes of Fame and Bliss to Come.

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Validate Yourself...Questions 6 and 7

This is a continuation, parts 6 and 7, of the series of questions posed by the Black Artists of DC (BADC). Why did you start collecting black art exhibition catalogues? Why did you establish the Guide to Black Art Exhibitions?

Collecting black art exhibition catalogues was a gradual and evolving process. As a collector of black (African American) fine art, I strongly believe that a collector of art should be familiar and knowledgeable about the literature surrounding that art. I'll refer to this as the history and documentation of fine art. Very early on, I had a keen interest in learning about the fine arts and became very active in the gallery and museum world. As a learning experience, I slowly began collecting catalogues, simply by purchasing them from the various exhibits I attended locally and when traveling. The main purpose was to learn more about black art and artists and to be knowledgeable and able to speak intelligently on the subject. The more I read and learned, the more I wanted to know. There was a natural curiosity of how individual artists fit into the whole picture of American art.
As my knowledge base increased, my library skills kicked in and I recognized that there was a gap in the literature focusing on black art/artists. There simply did not appear to be enough information out there in the key journals and monographs, and in a naive sense, I wanted to attempt to fill that gap by creating a repository containing documentation of ephemeral materials, monographs and exhibition catalogues. In comparison to other cultural fields, including the performing arts, I recognized that printed material in fine arts literature was less available. I began to refer to these gaps in the literature as the missing links in our black cultural heritage. As I began to study and use the collections in the various black repositories and even major libraries in general, I realized that so much was missing in those collections. Even when books and catalogues had been published, they seemed not to exist in many of our libraries. A great part of the problem probably stems from the fact that most of the catalogues are published in small runs, usually no more than 3,000 copies and are usually available only at the actual exhibition venues. There is not a mass distribution plan, unless the exhibition is national in scope, meaning that it is a traveling exhibition. Consequently, the exhibition catalogues are acquired on a more regional basis rather than national.

Collecting became a passion and I aggressively scoured standard bibliographies to identify what had been published by decade, starting in the 1980s and moving backwards to the 1950s. So, the basic strategy was to see what was available on the secondary market based on a list of titles that had been published. I created my own list of definitive or must have titles and began the search from that point. The Internet was an invaluable resource, introducing me to the secondary market of book dealers. I was able to locate titles from across the country and many for a nominal cost, particularly those in smaller cities and less urban locations. It was not until recently that there has become competition to acquire the literature focusing on black art/artists. Even among collectors of black art, there may not be a concerted effort to collect the print materials relating to the art or the artists. I refer to these materials: books, exhibition catalogues, show announcement cards, press releases as part of the documentation of black art/artists. Because of my interest in documentation, I wanted to acquire as much as I could afford in terms of primary and published materials on black art/artists.

The Black Art Project publishes the Guide to Black Art Exhibitions, and the Guide has gradually evolved to where it is today. When I began the publication, it was born from one of those ah ha moments. For years, I collected exhibition catalogues and each year in the process of looking for the latest exhibition catalogues, I would discover exhibitions with and those without catalogues. Consequently, each year I had amassed all of this information on black exhibitions and literally did nothing with it; it was raw data. After about 3-4 years of having accumulating then destroying the information after I purchased the catalogues, I realized that the data collected was not available in any single source, so I came up with the idea of pulling the information together in some meaningful way. That meaningful way took the form of the annual Guide to Black Art Exhibitions. It is such a good feel to know that others might benefit from these efforts and black art/artists are documented in some tangible sense. I strongly believe that there are many small ways that many of us can contribute to this documentation and preservation of our visual arts culture. The immediate use of the Guide is apparent; but the Guide, in some small way, does its part to document. My hopes are that it will or can be a tool that others will use, at a later date, to write a part of a bigger story.
© 2009 Black Art Project... all rights reserved. For permission to reproduce contact: blackartproject@comcast.net.

Validate Yourself...Question 5

This is a continuation, Part 5, of the series of questions posed by the Black Artists of DC (BADC). What are the tools available at the library for research on Black artists?

There are some tools that are related specifically to Black artists and then there are other tools that may not be race specific, but will contain information on a small number of established Black artists. In seeking information on those artists who may not be widely cited in the literature or who have yet to appear in indexed print sources, we still have ways to capture information on them, but the challenges are greater. A brief discussion such as this does not lend itself to in-depth coverage of the literature, but allows me to touch upon some classic tools that readily come to mind. However, keep in mind that there are many other sources and the ultimate selection of any resource is based on the level and depth of information that one seeks. I will mention just a few historical and current sources that can get the average person to biographical information and samples of an artist’s work and these sources will appear in most library collections. Keep in mind that the local public library, an academic library if services are extended to you, and the local museum libraries are all points at which you can explore and discover the world of Black art/artists. As your needs expand, there are other sources to which your local librarian can direct you.

Afro-American Artists: A Bio-bibliographical Directory by Theresa D. Cederholm is a 1973 classic source that lists personal information, including exhibition history, selected works, print sources with reviews and other information on artists.

250 Years of Afro-American Art: An Annotated Bibliography by Lynn Moody Igoe (1981) is a comprehensive source that consists of 3 bibliographies: The Basic Bibliography is an annotated bibliography of books, exhibition catalogs, and periodical/newspaper articles that refer to more than one artist or Afro-American art in general. The Subject Bibliography is an annotated bibliography of references to selected subjects in Afro-American art. The Artist Bibliography contains individual bibliographies for artists and it includes references to specific artworks that are reproduced in the literature cited in this particular book.

St. James Guide to Black Artists is a biographical source (1997) that includes personal information, a biographical sketch, exhibition history, publications that include the artist, collections in which the artist is a part of, and in some instances there may be a few illustrations.

In order to locate the most recent information about an artist, one can explore general as well as art specific databases such as the following:

• Biography and Genealogy Master Index is one of the best sources to begin a search for information about individuals from any field. It's an index to current, as well as important retrospective works, and it is international in coverage.
  
• Art Index is in both paper and electronic formats. The paper format is a monthly publication. The electronic database, which is updated daily, provides ease of use and can cover an extensive number of years based on your search parameters. This is a critical resource for any type of art research. Its broad coverage of contemporary art around the world includes new artists, exhibition reviews, non-western art, feminist criticism, and Black artists when they are featured totally or part of an article. Currently, over 377 international art publications are indexed. Art Full Text (electronic) offers full text plus abstracts and indexing of publications, covering 1984 to the present. Also, there is Art Index Retrospective (electronic) that is an accumulation of citations to Art Index volumes 1-32 of the printed index, covering the years 1929 through 1984.

The Local Artists File is a file created by the Art Division of the District of Columbia Public Library in which they collect supplemental and ephemeral material about artists of the Metropolitan Washington area, especially those associated in some way with the District of Columbia. The file consists of exhibition catalogs, pamphlets, gallery announcements, newspaper clippings, and any other information that is located in the literature or donated by artists. This is a particularly strong source for information on individuals who are not yet published in standard books, etc.
Another important feature when researching art/artists is to determine the auction history or ascertain whether an artist has had any auction history. It is this history that will often determine cost on the secondary market.

• AskArt http://www.askart.com/ The uniqueness of this electronic resource is its accessibility to auction records for those artists who have auction history. In an unfortunate sense, the records from this source do not include prints or photography. This is a fee for service site.
  
• Gordon’s Print Price Annual has a vast number of international auction results, covering 50,000 prints (2005 ed). Also, there is a Gordon’s Photography Price Annual International.
• Davenport’s Art Reference and Price Guide is easy and fast to use with a very comprehensive artist index. There is price information for over 275,000 artists. However, keep in mind that the prices are an approximate indicator based on an average of what an artist’s works are worth.

To get the up to the minute and accurate auction prices, consult the auction house where the artist’s works were sold. As an example, if one is looking for the current auction value of artists who appeared in the Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Company auction at Swann Galleries (October 4, 2007) visit their web site to see the online catalog: http://www.swanngalleries.com/full.cgi?index_id=347&sch_id=375 and see the actual results of the auction http://swanngalleries.rfcsystems.com/asp/RealtimeResults.asp .

Finally, for artist’s who are deceased, there are sources to consult to authenticate the artist’s signature. The most widely known of these are in a series by John Castagno. There are the American Artists Signatures and Monograms from 1800 (two editions) and Abstract Artists: Signatures and Monograms, an International Directory.
These sources should get the researcher started on his/her path to explore and discover Black artists. For more specific questions, see your local art librarian. Start your search at the public library and the experience itself will be a reward. That starting point for District of Columbia residents at the DC Public Library would be by phone at 202/ 727-1291, or visiting at 901 G Street, NW (MLK Memorial Library), Room 209. If the information is not readily on hand, the librarian will make appropriate referrals.
© 2009 Black Art Project... all rights reserved. For permission to reproduce contact: blackartproject@comcast.net.

Historical Exhibition, 2

In May of 1945, the names of 46 recipients of the Julius Rosenwald Fellowship for 1946 were announced. That number included 29 Black fellows and among its ranks was Alice Elizabeth Catlett who, at the time, was an instructor of art at George Washington Carver school in New York city. Catlett's vision, as a fellow, was to do a series of lithographs, paintings, and sculptures of Negro women. After a year of planning, thought, and work, her vision was clearly defined and brought into focus in her reapplication for a fellowship in 1947, and she received her second award. In that reapplication process, Catlett settled on a "complete unit" of prints. This complete suite of 15 images are a strong and well-told commentary on The Negro Woman, stirring and intense in both images and words. Each of the images can stand along, but their strength is even more enhanced when seen and read as a cohesive unit. The story of The Negro Woman is clearly and strongly expressed in images and words.

In December 1947 - January 1948, the thirty (30) pieces that were conceived and created while Catlett was studying for two years on a Rosenwald Fellowship were exhibited at the Barnett Aden Gallery in Washington, DC. It is an undisputed fact that The Barnett Aden Gallery is one of the first privately owned Black galleries in the United States and the first one in Washington, DC. It was founded in 1943 by James Vernon Herring, chair of Howard University's Department of Art, and Alonzo Aden, curator of the Howard University Gallery of Art. In addition to providing a venue for such Black artists as Romare Bearden, Lois Mailou Jones, Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, Archibald Motley, John Robinson, and others, it was one of the few galleries in the city in which artists representing different nationalities, races, and ethnicities exhibited together.
The cover and a page from the 1947, The Negro Woman, exhibition catalogue listing the pieces that were on exhibit are shown above (see illustrations). This catalogue contained 4 pages that included a Preface written by Gwendolyn Bennett. Under the section labelled Prints appears the full series of The Negro Woman, consisting of 15 pieces. These 15 pieces present a narrative with each image and its caption representing one phrase of the narrative. Look carefully at the captions of those individual pieces as they spell out the significance of The Negro Woman, acknowledging hard work, celebrating renowned heroines, and focusing on the fears, struggles, and achievements. The series begins with I am the Negro Woman and ends with the fifteenth in the series, My Right is a Future of Equality with other Americans. In their entirety, the images and words make a powerful statement of social commentary for the time period.

Jane Watson Crane, in a review appearing in the December 21, 1947 issue of the Washington Post (page L5), states "Two things stand out concerning the Elizabeth Catlett exhibition on The Negro Woman... one is the meticulous craftsmanship, the other the straightforward approach. The artist has something to say here, and she pulls no punches. This is an unusually strong show for a woman--unusual also in the variety of media--paintings. sculpture and prints are shown--in all of which she seems perfectly at home."

My curiosity was raised as I read Crane's review and noticed the statement an"unusually strong show for a woman," yet there was surprisingly no mention of race. With an understanding of segregation in the South in 1947, I would have expected some mention of race, as well as the sexist comment; however, such was not the case. Racial tones in Crane's review were not mentioned which led me to think that perhaps Crane was of the school of thought that more readily accepted blacks as accomplished artists which probably demonstrated a more liberal position of those working in the arts. My thoughts and questions will probably drive me into conducting some research to find out who was Jane Watson Crane, not the Washington Post writer, but Crane the person.

Roughly 62 years after their completion, we are still afforded an opportunity to see the entire suite of prints from The Negro Woman series in a traveling exhibition, A Force of Change: African American Art and the Julius Rosenwald Fund, currently at Spertus Museum (Chicago, Illinois, on view through August 16, 2009). The exhibition will travel to the Allentown Art Museum (Allentown, Pennsylvania, September 13, 2009 - January 10, 2010); and end at the Montclair Art Museum (Montclair, New Jersey, February 6 - July 25, 2010). A catalogue accompanies this exhibition. For more information on A Force of Change: African American Art and the Julius Rosenwald Fund, follow this link: http://www.spertus.edu/exhibitions/rosenwald.php

© 2009 Black Art Project... all rights reserved. For permission to reproduce contact: blackartproject@comcast.net or blackartproject@yahoo.com .

Validate Yourself...Question 4

This is a continuation, Part 4, of the series of questions posed by the Black Artists of DC (BADC).

When were the black art files at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Library established and why? What exactly should artists submit and to whom?

The DC Public Library does not have a file called the black art files. However, the Local Artists File began over 60 years ago and black artists are a part of that historic file. About 13 years ago, the Art Division of DC Public Library made a concerted effort to identify and encourage black artists to become a more active part of this file because there was such a presence of black artists in the city and metropolitan area. With the emergence of BADC, it has been somewhat easier to identify the artists who need to be a part of this wonderfully rich file. It is important for artists to have information accessible for researchers, collectors, appraisals, students, etc. The Local Artists File, which is a secure reference file, in which information is given to customers to use a few pieces at a time, contains much of the primary source materials that one can use to write articles, reviews, biographical sketches, appraise art, identify an artist, etc. The materials in this file do not circulate; they must be used in the Library.

Each artist is asked to fill out a two part questionnaire that is on acid free paper. This questionnaire is the basic foundation of the file which contains pertinent information on the artist, including samples of the artist's signature(s). In addition to this basic questionnaire, the artist is free to donate any supplemental and ephemeral material that he/she chooses. The file consists of exhibition catalogs, pamphlets, gallery announcements, newspaper clippings, letters, and etc. It is continually updated through a network that has been created with a number of the local commercial galleries and organizations that share copies of local artists information, biographies or resumes. The collection is constantly growing, and presently has in excess of 1,800 artists, each of which is in a separate folder. Some artists who are very conscientious about updating their material will have more than one folder full of materials. Questions about this file can be addressed to any art librarian at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library, District of Columbia Public Library System by calling 202/ 727-1291.

After an artist has had a file established, information may be sent to the Art Division, Room 209, District of Columbia Public Library, 901 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20001. I encourage local artists to become a part of this Local Artists File, and to keep their information current, creating a schedule that best suits them for updating. A quarterly or even an annual update should not be taxing on the artist. The success and advantage to having a current file is that you are a part of building a legacy for the future.

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James A. Porter Colloquium on African American Art

TRAJECTORIES: Discourse and Critique in African American Art and Art of the African Diaspora

This is an excellent opportunity for art historians, artists, critics, curators, collectors, interdisciplinary scholars, museum professionals, gallery owners, librarians/archivists, students, and the general public to support and be engaged in the documentation of African American art and visual culture. Participate in the 20th Annual Celebration of the James A. Porter Colloquium at Howard University.

Dates: April 16 - 18, 2009

Place: Howard University, Armour J. Blackburn Center, Washington, DC

Honorees: Sharon Patton and Judith Wilson

Keynote Address: Salah Hassan

Speakers: Cheryl Finley and Emma Amos

Contact: info@portercolloquium.org

To register and for the full Colloquium schedule and highlight information on honorees and speakers, follow this link: http://portercolloquium.org/colloquium/2009/colloquium-program/

COLLOQUIUM OVERVIEW
"The James A. Porter Colloquium is the leading forum for scholars, artists, curators and others in the field of African American Art and Visual Culture. Established at Howard University in 1990 by art historian, Dr. Floyd Coleman, the annual Colloquium is named in honor of James A. Porter, the pioneering Art Historian and Professor, whose 1943 publication Modern Negro Art laid the foundation for the field of study. The Colloquium continues his legacy through dynamic programming, scholarly research and artistic leadership. Past Colloquium presenters have included such leading scholars and artists as David Driskell, Ann Gibson, Leslie King Hammond, Michael D. Harris, Samella Lewis, E.J. Montgomery, John Scott, Deborah Willis and Judith Wilson."

MISSION
"The Porter Colloquium continues its tradition of boldly promoting innovative perspectives, ground breaking scholarship and open critical dialogue on African American art. During this year’s three-day program, scholars, artists, and cultural critics will examine the ideas that influence how works of African American artists are viewed, interpreted and valued. To this end, the Colloquium reveres the legacy of Professor James A. Porter and honors artists of color with clear and probing analyses of our visual traditions."

LEGACY CONTINUES

This is the 20th Annual Celebration of the James A. Porter Colloquium, celebrating the legacy of Professor Porter and honoring artists of color with clear and probing analyses of our visual traditions. As has been its tradition, during this annual three-day program, scholars, artists, and cultural critics will examine the ideas that influence how works of African American artists are viewed, interpreted and valued.

This year’s theme, Trajectories, "provides a frame by which art historians, artists, critics, curators, collectors and interdisciplinary scholars, privilege topics, concepts, and issues that further tease out the complexities, the multiple levels of meaning, the subtleties, the contradictions in recent artistic production and art scholarship. The trajectories that are being explored in Porter Colloquium sessions this year include demographics, the movement of people and ideas over large parts of the world and particularly their immigration to the United States and to major art centers around the world. To be sure, the changes that have taken place over the past two decades need reexamination, particularly with respect to the changes in artistic productions and the exploration of concepts and ideas that have helped to change the artistic landscape."

PARTNERSHIP
The presentation of James A. Porter Colloquium is presented in conjunction with the following programmatic partners: The David C. Driskell Center, University of Maryland: http://driskellcenter.umd.edu/ and the Howard University Art Gallery.

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Historical Exhibition

It is exciting to run across and physically hold one of those rare exhibition catalogues documenting a time period when there were fewer opportunities for the black artist to exhibit and certainly to exhibit in a black owned gallery. Such is the case with the first annual exhibition from June 8 - 22, 1939 at the Salon of Contemporary Negro Art sponsored by the Augusta Savage Studios, Inc. The gallery was located at 143 West 125th Street, New York, New York.

By today's standard, the small catalogue is a single sheet folded into 4 pages and would probably be referred to simply as a brochure. Yet historically, it is an invaluable art history document that allows us to put the gallery and the actual exhibition into an historical perspective. Augusta Savage, George W. Lattimore, and Kenneth W. Smith are listed as directors. Listed on the two inside pages of the catalogue are the titles and artists of the 54 pieces included in the exhibit. A list of 30 artists which represent a virtual 20th century who's who of black artists includes such artists as Meta Warrick Fuller, Richmond Barthe, Robert Pious, Rex Gorleigh, Morgan Smith, Gwendolyn Knight, Norman Lewis, Ellis Wilson, Beauford Delaney, Georgette Seabrooke, Marvin Smith, William Farrow, Francisco P. Lord, Lois Mailou Jones, Selma Burke, Ernest Crichlow, James Lesesne Wells, and Augusta Savage.

According to the Chicago Defender (National edition), June 10, 1939, the headline on page 13 reads: "Artists Get New Inspiration --From Augusta Savage-- Who Opens Gallery To Sell-- Their Work To The Public." As stated in the article, "The first art gallery in America devoted to the exhibition and sale of the works of artists of the Race will be opened at 143 West 125th Street, New York City on June 8.... This new gallery...is owned and operated by Race members and will open formally with an exhibition of the works of outstanding artists of today." Augusta Savage was president of the corporation (Augusta Savage Studios, Inc,) which sponsored the Salon of Contemporary Art; George W. Lattimore was vice-president; and Kenneth W. Smith was secretary-treasurer.

In announcing the opening of the new gallery, Augusta Savage said, "I have long felt that Negro artists, in the course of our development, have reached the point where they should have a gallery of their own--one devoted to the exhibition and sale of Negro art. The Salon of Contemporary Negro Art will attempt to fill that need. We have made every effort to make this one of the finest galleries in the country." (Artists Get New Inspiration From Augusta Savage Who Opens Gallery To Sell Their Work To The Public (1939, June 10). The Chicago Defender (National edition), p. 13.)

© 2009 Black Art Project... all rights reserved. For permission to reproduce contact: blackartproject@comcast.net or blackartproject@yahoo.com .