Over the Line: the Art and Life of Jacob Lawrence

OVER THE LINE: The Art and Life of Jacob Lawrence (2001; $50), edited with an introduction by Peter T. Nesbett and Michelle DuBois. University of Washington Press, P.O. Box 50096, Seattle, WA 98145 5096.

Published after his death in 2000, this is a comprehensive review of the life and work of one of our most important Afro-American artists. Peter Nesbett, one of the publication's editors, is the Founder and Director of the Jacob Lawrence Catalogue Raisonne Project. As stated in the forward: "The goals were to catalogue and publish his entire lifework in a manner that was guided by the highest standards of scholarship and to make the results of research available to the public in a manner that provided the greatest benefit to a wide array of users."

Children in elementary schools as well as graduate students at the university level can benefit greatly from this publication. Children can look at these powerful images and derive some sense for growing up in Harlem and becoming an artist. Graduate students can learn much about the struggles of a young African American artist working in WPA Workshops, completing works dealing with the life of Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, teaching at Black Mountain (North Carolina) College and completing many major commissions.

Jacob Lawrence is one of our nation's great artists. This publication tells his story.--J.J.H. For information about this publication, circle No. 386 on the Reader Service Card.

COPYRIGHT 2004 Publishers' Development Corporation
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group