Romi Crawford – författare

A kaleidoscopic history of the Studio Museum in Harlem told through oral histories, essays, and a trove of archival imageryFounded in 1968 by a diverse group of artists, community activists, and philanthropists, the Studio Museum in Harlem is internationally known for its catalytic role in promoting the work of artists of African descent. The Museum has a unique history but until now, there has not been a publication that positions its founding and tells its story.Bringing together oral histories from the Museum’s founding figures; essays by leading scholars, curators, and artists; and a trove of archival material, this dynamic volume offers the first comprehensive history of the Studio Museum. In-depth essays anchor thematic sections examining the Museum’s founding, its collecting practices and exhibitions, and community engagement. Shorter texts and monologues drawn from interviews with foundational figures immerse the reader in specific events, exhibitions, and moments in the landmark institution’s history. At the book’s center is an expansive visual archive offering a timeline in ephemera and photographs, many of them published here for the first time. This richly illustrated volume will serve as the definitive resource on the history and legacy of the place “Where Black Art Lives.”Distributed for the Studio Museum in Harlem

The Wall of Respect: Public Art and Black Liberation in 1960s Chicago is the first in-depth, illustrated history of a lost Chicago monument. The Wall of Respect was a revolutionary mural created by fourteen members of the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC) on the South Side of Chicago in 1967. This book includes photographs by Darryl Cowherd, Bob Crawford, Roy Lewis, and Robert A. Sengstacke, and gathers historic essays, poetry, and previously unpublished primary documents from the movement’s founders that provide a guide to the work’s creation and evolution.The Wall of Respect received national critical acclaim when it was unveiled on the side of a building at Forty-Third and Langley in Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood. Painters and photographers worked side by side on the mural's seven themed sections, which featured portraits of Black heroes and sheroes, among them John Coltrane, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, and W. E. B. Du Bois. The Wall became a platform for music, poetry, and political rallies. Over time it changed, reflecting painful controversies among the artists as well as broader shifts in the Civil Rights and Black Liberation Movements.At the intersection of African American culture, politics, and Chicago art history, The Wall of Respect offers, in one keepsake-quality work, an unsurpassed collection of images and essays that illuminate a powerful monument that continues to fascinate artists, scholars, and readers in Chicago and across the United States.