Wake Up Our Souls: A Celebration of Black American Artists

Wake Up Our Souls: A Celebration of Black American Artists What an incredible resource! We can't imagine a school without this book. The books explores the work of more than 30 Black artists. These include such giants as Joshua Johnson, William H. Johnson, Augusta Savage, Gordon Parks - and wonderful Faith Ringgold! (Remember Tar Beach?) More than 45 works of art are reproduced in this book along with extended captions and photographs of the artists.

There are examples of a wide range of medium from photography, painting, sculpture and Faith Ringgold's story quilts. Some of the works are realistic, some are abstract.

The book has three main sections: Early Strivings, Great Awakenings and Upward & Onward. For each artist written about, there is an illustration of his or her work with explanatory text below it.

Besides tracing the history of Black artists, this well-written book gives a comprehensive feel for the social context of the eras spanned by the content. Tonya Bolden is the talented author. Wake Up Our Souls... is just $24.95, 127 pages. There is an exhibition schedule of the art featured in the book as well, starting with the Cincinnati Art Museum from January 8 to March 7, 2004. Check with the publisher, Abrams, for more information on the exhibits. Contact Jason Wells at jwells@abramsbooks.com Publishing date is February 2004.