Aaron Bryant – författare

Reckoning: Protest. Defiance. Resilience showcases the potent role of visual art in African American history. Featuring Black artists working in a range of media, from photography to sculpture to painting--including Jean-Michel Basquiat, Sheila Pree Bright, Bisa Butler, Shaun Leonard, David Hammons, to name just a few the book considers art that exemplifies resilience in times of conflict, as well as the ritual of creation, and the defiant pleasure of healing. Reckoning explores the ongoing struggles Black Americans have faced in their pursuit to enjoy the fundamental rights and freedoms promised in the Constitution to citizens of the United States. Drawn from the museum s permanent collection, the featured works respond to the dual crises of Covid-19 and systemic racism that shaped 2020, a period that has been called one of reckoning, as the world witnessed the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and other African Americans, leading to some of the largest protests in US history. Exploring the journey from defiance to acceptance, from racial violence to cultural resilience, grief to hope, this book emphasizes the interconnectedness of art, American history, and African American history and speaks to the critical moment of collective reckoning we are experiencing as a nation.

This richly illustrated book is the first monograph to explore the prolific career of the celebrated photographer Anthony Barboza. Anthony Barboza (b. 1944) is a celebrated artist and writer who has made thousands of photographs in the studio and on the street since 1963. A member of the Kamoinge collective of photographers in New York, Barboza is largely self-taught and has an inimitable, highly intuitive vision that he refers to as "eye dreaming," or "a state of mind that's almost like meditation." Throughout the years he has made countless commercial images, including celebrity portraits, advertisements, and album covers. His personal photographic projects illuminate his deep investment in the art and concerns of Black communities, not only in the United States but also around the globe. This lavishly illustrated volume follows Barboza's prolific career from his youth in New Bedford, Massachusetts, to his formative years in New York in the 1960s, to the present day. An introduction by renowned author and critic Hilton Als underscores Barboza's importance and impact. An essay by curator Aaron Bryant contextualizes Barboza's life and career as they map against major civil rights events in the United States. In an intimate interview between the artist and curator Mazie M. Harris, Barboza offers astute, humorous, and intimate musings on his long career, foundational influences, and artistic legacy. This monograph, the first on the artist, will appeal to aficionados of photography and Black art and culture.

This volume coincides with the 10th anniversary of the opening of the NMAAHC and celebrations surrounding the signing of the Declaration of Independence 250 years ago. It illustrates how the American flag carries multiple meanings across generations. From soldiers saving Old Glory and veterans' families holding tight a memorial banner, to political activists, sports figures, and everyday Americans waving the Stars and Stripes, African Americans have made the flag their own. While some images celebrate the patriotism and the pride of national identities, others speak to the complex histories of America and the paradox of liberty. The book presents photographs that date from the Civil War to the present day and shows work by celebrated photographers including Anthony Barboza, James Karales, Gordon Parks, Platon, and Maurice Sorrell alongside contemporary images by Sheila Pree Bright, Lola Flash, Zun Lee, Michael McCoy, Rashod Taylor, and others.