During the late 1960's in America, Black people began to realize the failures of the Civil Rights Movement. Their previous desire for non-violent integration, -which had sparked behavior in the white community ranging from violent opposition to benign neglect—had radicalized to embrace a notion of separatism and liberation from America. Black Cultural Nationalism called for Black Power and an affirmation of the currency of Black culture that required representation. The Black Arts Movement attempted to meet these needs by attempting to establish a Black Aesthetic. Qualities of Black art and the Black aesthetic were hotly debated in the media as both black and white writers argued the relevancy of black art. The Black aesthetic advocated a return to figuration and social realism, deemed essential to communicate with the black masses, as well as an espousal of the political responsibility of the artist. The critique of a black art was based on the argument that the category ghettoized and essentialized black artists. Instead a Greenbergian modernist aesthetic was embraced that favored abstraction over figuration, perceiving figurative art as low art. This was the dilemma faced by the politically minded artist in Franti's lyric. How can an artist make aesthetically valid art and maintain its access—and relevancy to Black people. An articulation of these black cultural problems needed a specific visual vocabulary. In my paper I will examine the art coalition called Africobra—The African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists- as they attempted to negotiate the fine line between socially relevant and aesthetically viable art. Formed in Chicago in the wake of the 1968 Democratic Convention Riots, Africobra wanted to produce and exhibit art specifically for Black people without their art being dismissed as protest art. By merging their figurative art with African color schemes and textile patterns, Africobra aspired to create their own type of African-influenced social commentary. They chose Africa as a source of pride as the 'dark continent' had recently shed its colonial ties to emerge as a free land for Black people. Africa thus represented ties to a forgotten past, and hope for an independent future for American Blacks. My thesis will focus on an event that galvanized the Black Arts Movement, and brought together the artists that would later form Africobra. That event was the 1967 creation of the Wall of Respect, a public mural on the south side of Chicago that depicted images of Black heroes and contemporary politics. Using the mural as well as Africobra prints and paintings, I will argue that their work questioned conventional aesthetics and endeavored to create a space for a new black aesthetic. This merging of social realism and African color was made more poignant by the inclusion of African notions of the functional communal object. By returning to their African roots, Africobra was critiquing the Western art world while glorifying their own heritage. By doing this they believed that they could inject some much needed color into White America.

Thesis--New York University, 1973. / Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 419-434).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Pennsylvania State University, 1987. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 119-125).

During the late 1960's in America, Black people began to realize the failures of the Civil Rights Movement. Their previous desire for non-violent integration, -which had sparked behavior in the white community ranging from violent opposition to benign neglect—had radicalized to embrace a notion of separatism and liberation from America. Black Cultural Nationalism called for Black Power and an affirmation of the currency of Black culture that required representation. The Black Arts Movement attempted to meet these needs by attempting to establish a Black Aesthetic. Qualities of Black art and the Black aesthetic were hotly debated in the media as both black and white writers argued the relevancy of black art. The Black aesthetic advocated a return to figuration and social realism, deemed essential to communicate with the black masses, as well as an espousal of the political responsibility of the artist. The critique of a black art was based on the argument that the category ghettoized and essentialized black artists. Instead a Greenbergian modernist aesthetic was embraced that favored abstraction over figuration, perceiving figurative art as low art. This was the dilemma faced by the politically minded artist in Franti's lyric. How can an artist make aesthetically valid art and maintain its access—and relevancy to Black people. An articulation of these black cultural problems needed a specific visual vocabulary. In my paper I will examine the art coalition called Africobra—The African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists- as they attempted to negotiate the fine line between socially relevant and aesthetically viable art. Formed in Chicago in the wake of the 1968 Democratic Convention Riots, Africobra wanted to produce and exhibit art specifically for Black people without their art being dismissed as protest art. By merging their figurative art with African color schemes and textile patterns, Africobra aspired to create their own type of African-influenced social commentary. They chose Africa as a source of pride as the 'dark continent' had recently shed its colonial ties to emerge as a free land for Black people. Africa thus represented ties to a forgotten past, and hope for an independent future for American Blacks. My thesis will focus on an event that galvanized the Black Arts Movement, and brought together the artists that would later form Africobra. That event was the 1967 creation of the Wall of Respect, a public mural on the south side of Chicago that depicted images of Black heroes and contemporary politics. Using the mural as well as Africobra prints and paintings, I will argue that their work questioned conventional aesthetics and endeavored to create a space for a new black aesthetic. This merging of social realism and African color was made more poignant by the inclusion of African notions of the functional communal object. By returning to their African roots, Africobra was critiquing the Western art world while glorifying their own heritage. By doing this they believed that they could inject some much needed color into White America. / Arts, Faculty of / Art History, Visual Art and Theory, Department of / Graduate

No description available.

Thesis (M.A.)--Ohio University, August, 2008. / Title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references.

Stella Jones Gallery: An Organizational Analysis and Suggested Marketing Plan is based on my internship as Managing Director of Stella Jones Gallery. The internship report will focus on 1. Analyzing the organizational structure and cultures of Stella Jones Gallery as it relates to the internship and 2. Creating a marketing plan to support, expose, and expand the mission of the organization. Because of the report's objectives, the internship report has been segmented into the following sections: Part I: Organizational Analysis Stella Jones Gallery's organizational structure and culture will be analyzed to determine the effectiveness and efficiency of its methods and practices. Through the analysis, a description and evaluation of my internship as Managing Director will be provided to discuss the overall effectiveness of the position. It will also discuss the position's contribution to the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This section will be immediately followed by suggestions in management and staffing as well as ways in which the organization can redefine and strengthen its organizational culture. Part II: Suggested Marketing Plan At the time of the internship, Stella Jones Gallery had been in existence for three and a half years and is emerging as one of the leading African-American galleries in the southeast region of the United States. The gallery has been very fortunate to have reviews in highly regarded magazines such as Art Business News, Art and Antiques, and the International Review of African-American Art. It has not, however, established a strategic marketing plan to propel the gallery to the forefront of the commercial arts industry. The marketing plan created will suggest ways the gallery can capitalize on the medial attention it has received. Secondly, it will illustrate how the gallery can promote and establish its product within the commercial arts industry and non-profit sector of the visual arts. Finally, it offers ways in which the gallery can forge ahead of its competition by offering on-line as well as curatorial and educational services. The issues addressed and suggestions made are to help Stella Jones Gallery reach its potential as a leading art organization. In conclusion, this report will note any changes or improvements made in the gallery's management practices, staff, and marketing strategies as a result of the suggestions offered.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Georgia Southern University, 2008. / "A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Georgia Southern University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Education." Under the direction of Ming Fang He. ETD. Electronic version approved: May 2008. Includes bibliographical references (p. 203-215) and appendices.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Teachers College, Columbia University, 1991. / Typescript; issued also on microfilm. Dissertation Committee: Ellen Condliffe Lagemann, Labros Comitas. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 118-123).

This thesis focuses on an African-American female artist, Valerie Maynard, examining how she synthesizes African and American elements in her works. It provides detailed formal and iconographical analyses, revealing concealed meanings and paying special attention to those works with which the artist mirrors the Black experience in the United States and Africa on the other side of the Atlantic. In the process, the thesis sheds new light on the significance of Valerie Maynard's work and how she has used some of them to embody the Black quest for freedom and social justice during the Civil Rights struggle of the 1960s and 1970s and beyond.