black arts movement essay

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The Black Arts Movement

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The Black Arts Movement began—symbolically, at least—the day after Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965. The poet LeRoi Jones (soon to rename himself Amiri Baraka ) announced he would leave his integrated life on New York City’s Lower East Side for Harlem. There he founded the Black Arts Repertory Theatre, home to workshops in poetry, playwriting, music, and painting. The Black Arts, wrote poet Larry Neal , was “the aesthetic and spiritual sister of the Black Power concept.” As with that burgeoning political movement, the Black Arts Movement emphasized self-determination for Black people, a separate cultural existence for Black people on their own terms, and the beauty and goodness of being Black. Black Arts poets embodied these ideas in a defiantly Black poetic language that drew on Black musical forms, especially jazz; Black vernacular speech; African folklore; and radical experimentation with sound, spelling, and grammar. Black Arts Movement poet and publisher Haki Madhubuti wrote, “And the mission is how do we become a whole people, and how do we begin to essentially tell our narrative, while at the same time move toward a level of success in this country and in the world? And we can do that. I know we can do that.” The Black Arts Movement was politically militant; Baraka described its goal as “to create an art, a literature that would fight for black people's liberation with as much intensity as Malcolm X our ‘Fire Prophet’ and the rest of the enraged masses who took to the streets.” Drawing on chants, slogans, and rituals of call and response, Black Arts poetry was meant to be politically galvanizing. Because of its politics—as well as what some saw as its potentially homophobic, sexist, and anti-Semitic elements—the Black Arts Movement was one of the most controversial literary movements in US history. The movement began to wane in the mid-1970s, in tandem with its political counterpart, the Black Power movement. Government surveillance and violence decimated Black Power organizations, but the Black Arts Movement fell prey to internal schism—notably over Baraka’s shift from Black nationalism to Marxism-Leninism—and financial difficulties. Mainstream theaters and publishing houses embraced a select number of Black Arts Movement poets seen as especially salable to white audiences. When these artists moved on from Black Arts presses and theaters, the revenue from their books and plays went with them. The independent economic support structure the movement had hoped to build for itself was decimated. “During the height of Black Arts activity, each community had a coterie of writers and there were publishing outlets for hundreds, but once the mainstream regained control, Black artists were tokenized,” wrote poet, filmmaker, and teacher Kalamu ya Salaam. Along with the economic recession of the 1970s and philanthropic foundations’ unwillingness to fund arts organizations that advocated radical politics, the cooption of a few Black artists by a white establishment meant the movement was no longer financially viable. Despite its brief official existence, the movement created enduring institutions dedicated to promoting the work of Black artists, such as Chicago’s Third World Press and Detroit’s Broadside Press, as well as community theaters. It also created space for the Black artists who came afterward, especially rappers, slam poets, and those who explicitly draw on the movement’s legacy. Ishmael Reed, a sometimes opponent of the Black Arts Movement, still noted its importance in a 1995 interview: “I think what Black Arts did was inspire a whole lot of Black people to write. Moreover, there would be no multiculturalism movement without Black Arts. Latinos, Asian Americans, and others all say they began writing as a result of the example of the 1960s. Blacks gave the example that you don't have to assimilate. You could do your own thing, get into your own background, your own history, your own tradition and your own culture.” This collection brings together poems, podcasts, and essays by or about Black Arts Movement writers. Of course, we cannot pay tribute to every single poet's contribution and affiliation with this movement, so this collection is intended to be a beginning point, not the end point. To suggest additions to the collection, please contact us here .

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BlackPast is dedicated to providing a global audience with reliable and accurate information on the history of African America and of people of African ancestry around the world. We aim to promote greater understanding through this knowledge to generate constructive change in our society.

The black arts movement (1965-1975).

The Black Arts Movement was the name given to a group of politically motivated black poets, artists, dramatists, musicians, and writers who emerged in the wake of the Black Power Movement. The poet Imamu Amiri Baraka is widely considered to be the father of the Black Arts Movement, which began in 1965 and ended in 1975.

After Malcolm X was assassinated on February 21, 1965, those who embraced the Black Power movement often fell into one of two camps: the Revolutionary Nationalists, who were best represented by the Black Panther Party, and the Cultural Nationalists.  The latter group called for the creation of poetry, novels, visual arts, and theater to reflect pride in black history and culture.  This new emphasis was an affirmation of the autonomy of black artists to create black art for black people as a means to awaken black consciousness and achieve liberation.

The Black Arts Movement was formally established in 1965 when Baraka opened the Black Arts Repertory Theater in Harlem. The movement had its greatest impact in theater and poetry. Although it began in the New York/Newark area, it soon spread to Chicago, Illinois, Detroit, Michigan, and San Francisco, California. In Chicago, Hoyt Fuller and John Johnson edited and published Negro Digest (later Black World ), which promoted the work of new black literary artists. Also in Chicago, Third World Press published black writers and poets. In Detroit, Lotus Press and Broadside Press republished older works of black poetry. These Midwestern publishing houses brought recognition to edgy, experimental poets. New black theater groups were also established. In 1969, Robert Chrisman and Nathan Hare established The Black Scholar , which was the first scholarly journal to promote black studies within academia.

There was also collaboration between the cultural nationalists of the Black Arts Movement and mainstream black musicians, particularly celebrated jazz musicians including John Coltrane , Thelonious Monk , Archie Shepp, and others. Cultural nationalists saw jazz as a distinctly black art form that was more politically appealing than soul, gospel, rhythm and blues, and other genres of black music.

Although the creative works of the movement were often profound and innovative, they also often alienated both black and white mainstream culture with their raw shock value which often embraced violence. Some of the most prominent works were also seen as racist, homophobic, anti-Semitic, and sexist.  Many works put forth a black hyper masculinity in response to historical humiliation and degradation of African American men but usually at the expense of some black female voices.

The movement began to fade when Baraka and other leading members shifted from Black Nationalism to Marxism in the mid-1970s, a shift that alienated many who had previously identified with the movement. Additionally Baraka, Nikki Giovanni , Gil Scott-Heron , Maya Angelou , and James Baldwin achieved cultural recognition and economic success as their works began to be celebrated by the white mainstream.

The Black Arts Movement left behind many timeless and stirring pieces of literature, poetry, and theater. Ironically despite the male-dominated nature of the movement, several black female writers rose to lasting fame including Nikki Giovanni, Sonia Sanchez , Ntozake Shange , Audre Lorde , June Jordan , among others.  Additionally, the Black Arts Movement helped lay the foundation for modern-day spoken word and hip-hop.

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Source of the author's information:.

Darlene Clark Hine, et al., The African American Odyssey (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson, 2010); Thomas Aiello, “Black Arts Movement,” Encyclopedia of African American History, 1896 to the Present: From the Age of Segregation to the Twenty-first Century , ed. Paul Finkelman (New York: Oxford University Press, 2008).

Black Arts Movement

Summary of Black Arts Movement

The Black Arts Movement, sometimes referred to as the Black Aesthetics Movement, was influential in its ability to put together social, cultural, and political elements of the Black experience and established a cultural presence in America on a mainstream level. By incorporating visual motifs representative of the African Diaspora, as well as themes of revolutionary politics supporting Black Nationalism, the Black Arts Movement overtly distanced itself from white Eurocentric forms of art. It not only highlighted the work of Black artists but sought to define a universal experience of Blackness that expressed empowerment, pride, and liberation.

Key Ideas & Accomplishments

• The Black Arts Movement celebrated Afrocentrism by exploring and blending images from the past, present, and future into visual imagery that would inform a modern-day lexicon using contemporary modes such as poster and commercial art, lettering, and patterning.
• The Black Arts Movement arose in tandem with Identity Art and Identity Politics, a genre in which artists focused on presenting the faces and experiences of their marginalized populations which also included women and the LGBT community. Strong aesthetics and powerful statements representing the Black racial identity emerged during this time that would come to be synonymous with the Black community such as Black Power, "cool-ade" colors and militant chic.
• The Black Arts Movement saw the rise of collectives which would, bond together and provide a solidified front for Black artists to showcase their experiences as a separate and cohesive cultural identity within the nation.
• The Black Arts Movement spurred the rise of many educational and advocacy-related initiatives that would integrate into overall American culture providing the opportunity for immersion into the communal psyche of the country.

Artworks and Artists of Black Arts Movement

The Wall of Respect

The Wall of Respect was a twenty-by-sixty-foot mural painted on the facade of a two-story building at the corner of East 43rd Street and South Langley Avenue in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood. The piece was an homage to Black historical and contemporary figures involved in politics, education, athletics, and the arts. Fifty unique portraits were represented of individuals who lived and worked in line with the Black Power and Black Nationalist ideologies. This included Nat Turner, Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Gwendolyn Brooks, W.E.B. DuBois, Marcus Garvey, Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone, and Harriet Tubman. During the creative process, the artists decided not to include Martin Luther King Jr. among the political leaders because he wasn't radical enough from their perspective. Art historian Kirstin Ellsworth noted that the reasoning behind this notable omission was, "the change from what Civil Rights advocates viewed as the fight for equality-based integrationist policies within the American system to separatist politics that answered to the cause of revolution on a global scale created dissension among OBAC artists contributing to the mural." Many of the artists who contributed to the public artwork were associated with the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC), whose mission was to highlight the Black experience and struggle for racial justice in the United States through art. The mural was laid out by graphic designer Laini (Sylvia) Abernathy, while Jeff Donaldson and William Walker facilitated the painting process. The layout Abernathy developed was a modular design that divided the surfaces of the building into seven sections. These sections were the substrates that the artists painted on. Donaldson recalled that the project "was a clarion call, a statement of the existence of a people." The location of the mural was relevant as a celebration of Black culture. Bronzeville is known as Chicago's Black metropolis due to its history as an early-twentieth-century incubator for African American business and culture and home to one of the mural's subjects, the poet and educator Gwendolyn Brooks. Additional subjects were added to the Wall of Respect as the Civil Rights and Black Liberation movements progressed. Wall of Respect 's existence was short-lived and it was impacted by several acts of vandalism. The building was severely damaged by a fire in 1971, officially ending the mural's tenure in the public space. However, as historians Mariana Mogilevich, Rebecca Ross, and Ben Campkin have noted, Wall of Respect "claimed an everyday surface as a highly visible celebration of black experience and successfully elicited reciprocal identification, and a sense of collective ownership, by local people. In spite - and because - of its destruction, this revolutionary act of image-making had profound influence in the neighborhood, and inspired community mural movements around the USA and internationally."

Artist: Noah Purifoy

Sir Watts depicts an abstracted human-like torso clad in armor. The piece is an homage to the casualties of dissent between race, informed by a historical event the artist, Noah Purifoy, experienced. Beginning on August 11, 1965, racial tensions in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Watts reached a violent climax, leading to a six-day riot that caused thirty-four deaths and more than forty-million dollars in property damage. Writer Ismail Muhammad called the sculpture "the sign of a mind investigating itself, a member of a discarded class discovering its own beauty and feeling a little sad that others cannot discover it as well." At the time of the riots, Noah Purifoy and fellow artist and arts educator Judson Powell had only recently founded the Watts Towers Art Center before the neighborhood was ransacked during the uprising. In the aftermath, they collected materials from within the rubble and piles of debris. They then fashioned remnants from the devastation into a group of sculptures. They also recruited other artists to make works with the salvaged materials. The resulting sixty-six artworks were presented at the Watts Summer Festival in 1966, under the title 66 Signs of Neon . The name of the exhibition references the burnt out and shattered signage from the neighborhood's businesses that had been destroyed during the riots. More than an exhibition, Purifoy and Powell considered 66 Signs of Neon to be an extension of educational and activist driven philosophy behind the Watts Towers Art Center. Purifoy noted that art can be an effective form of communication and a way to galvanize diverse groups of individuals. He wrote, "The artworks of 66 should be looked at, not as particular things in themselves, but for the sake of establishing conversation and communication, involvement in the act of living. The reason for being in our universe is to establish communication with others, one to one. And communication is not possible without the establishment of equality, one to one." Purifoy is known for assemblages made from found objects, which often communicate poignant and socially engaged statements. Curator Connie H. Choi explained that the riots "changed Purifoy's artistic vision as he moved toward assemblage and a more obviously socially charged aesthetic. The debris from the riot served as material for Purifoy, whose work explores the relationships between Dada assemblage practices, African sculptural traditions, and black folk art. Once the products of industrial and consumer culture, the rubble became art through its recontextualization by residents of Watts." African American studies scholar Paul Von Blum recalled that, "most [of the artwork in 66 Neon Signs ] found no permanent home and the materials returned to the junk heaps from which they originally came." Purifoy recreated the sculpture in 1996, calling it Sir Watts II .

Mixed-media assemblage

Black Unity

Artist: Elizabeth Catlett

Black Unity is a double-sided wooden sculpture merging symbols and representations of Black identity. One side depicts two human faces, while the other is shaped like a fist. The color of the wood, a dark cedar, alludes to dark skin. The profound message in Cartlett's sculpture is due to its synthesizing of cultural themes and social ideologies into nearly universally recognized symbols. The simplified representations in Black Unity offer an effective contextualization of Black power and serve as an object-based gesture of unity and protest. Curator Kanitra Fletcher analyzed the sculpture as being "simultaneously a gesture of protest and solidarity," adding that the juxtaposition of peaceful and sublime busts on one side and the clenched fist on the other, "represents quiet strength and defiant resolve." Fletcher also noted that the symbolism in Black Unity would be widely recognized as a symbol of Black Nationalism, therefore acknowledging that, "some viewers might be put off by her interpretation of the fist, a symbol of Black power." Catlett reflected that, "It might not win prizes and it might not get into museums, but we ought to stop thinking that way, just like we stopped thinking that we had to have straight hair. We ought to stop thinking we have to do the art of other people."

Wood sculpture

Revolutionary Suit

Artist: Jae Jarrell

Revolutionary Suit is a two-piece, salt and pepper jacket and skirt combination from Jae Jarrell's series of garments intended to communicate pride, power, vitality, and respect within Black culture. The skirt's style reflects the simple A-line design with ¾ length bell sleeves that was popular among 1960's women's fashion. The suit was made from gray tweed and embellished with a bright, pastel yellow, suede bandolier stitched along the edge of the jacket, which resembles a military style ammunition belt. Blurring the line between couture and militaristic styles of fashion, Revolutionary Suit embodied the tenets of Black Power and the Black aesthetic. The garment is both a symbol of revolutionary politics and artistic liberation. Jarrell noted that "We were saying something when we used the belts. We're involved in a real revolution." Jarrell began sewing and developed a sophisticated appreciation for fabric at a young age, inspired by her grandfather who worked as a tailor. She recalled, "I always thought of making clothes in order to have something unique, and later I learned to sew very well and made it my business to always make my garments. And I also have a love for vintage, knowing that it has secrets of the past that I can unfold." Jarrell remade Revolutionary Suit in 2010, which now resides in the collection of the Brooklyn Museum of Art.

Jihad Nation

Artist: Nelson Stevens

Jihad Nation features portraits of a Black man and woman sporting afro hairstyles with contemplative upward gazes. The faces are painted on top of a geometric background with a warm palette alluding to familiar color combinations of Pan-Africanism. Signs and symbols such as the ankh, pyramid, and modern-day apartment complex signify the act of Black nation building, which is a common theme throughout Stevens' art. Stevens was a key member of AfriCOBRA, whose paintings are prime examples of the artist collective's unique aesthetic. For example, the faces of the man and woman are stylized with a gestural application of "cool-ade colors," a chromatic scheme that references the flavors of the popular Kool-Aid flavored drink as well as the bright hues worn widely within the Black population. Jihad Nation was exhibited in the 1970 exhibition AfriCobra 1: Ten in Search of a Nation at Studio Museum in Harlem, New York. The exhibition was significant because it was the first time that art by AfriCOBRA was presented in a major art museum.

Acrylic on canvas

Ghetto Wall #2

Artist: David Driskell

Ghetto Wall #2 is a painted representation of a mural on a public wall made of dark red rectangular bricks. The mural itself consists of a Black silhouette of a person surrounded by a flaming yellow glow. To the right, down its vertical plane hovers a muted red hint of a face, strong lips and nose protruding at the bottom yet covered by the American flag, one of its white stars loose in the foreground. Abstract geometric shapes dance across the lower half of the piece, alive with vibrant color. On top of the mural, spans a black bar filled with the gritty scrawls of graffiti, including in red, the words "you," "I," "me," "LOVE," and a heart. According to DC Moore Gallery, which presented a survey of Driskell's work in 2019: "While works with overt protest are rare in Driskell's oeuvre, he found compelling reasons to initiate several works of sociopolitical commentary during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Important compositions in this vein include Ghetto Wall #2 (1970). Driskell imagines a painting-within-a-painting: a mural that covers an inner-city brick wall, a distinctly American phenomenon that arose with the Civil Rights movement, as a community effort to counter blight in stressed neighborhoods. The form of the X appears, a mark symbolic in this work of Civil Rights leader Malcolm X, as Driskell himself has noted. He also alludes to the American flag, its stripes appearing in two places on the canvas, and which also prefigure the African ribbon forms he would soon incorporate into other works."

Oil, acrylic, and collage on linen - Portland Museum of Art

Homage to Malcolm X

Artist: Jack Whitten

Homage to Malcolm X is a monochromatic oil painting on a triangular shaped canvas. The color, shape, and gestural application of paint signify the essence of Malcolm X's powerful leadership and influence. While many examples of visual art from the Black Arts Movement can be described as figurative art with recognizable and representational elements, Jack Whitten utilized abstraction and non-representational modes of painting to make similar statements of Black empowerment. Regarding the social and cultural messages within his abstract paintings, Whitten declared, "The political is in the work. I know it's there, because I put it in there." He said that "The painting for Malcolm, that's symbolic abstraction. That painting was done right after the assassination. Malcolm X had a grasp of the universal aspect of the struggle he was involved with. It's that conversion into the universal that gave him more power." The triangle has significant connections to strength in both the arts and applied physics. Triangles are the strongest of all shapes because any weight placed on them is evenly distributed via its three sides. In a work of art, triangles represent geometric sturdiness while adding a sense of visual unity. The triangle has been historically used by artists as a representation of spiritual hierarchy and integrity. Whitten described the use of the triangle in Homage to Malcolm X as a fitting and symbolic way to show the universal power that Malcolm X evoked. He also asserted that the "painting had to be dark, it had to be moody, it had to be deep. It had to give you the feeling of going deep down into something, and in doing that I was able to capture the essence of what Malcolm was all about."

Oil on canvas

Revolutionary

Artist: Wadsworth Jarrell

Revolutionary is a portrait of Black activist and educator Angela Davis in what artist Wadsworth Jarrell considered to be "an attempt to capture the majestic charm, seriousness, and leadership of an astute drum major for freedom." The graphic portrait combines imagery and text in a manner that is indicative of the syncopated rhythm and vibrant tones of jazz music. The distinctive color palette consists of what Jarrell and his fellow AfriCOBRA artists called "cool-ade colors," a play on the unique and notable color scheme associated with the Kool-Aid line of beverages. Jarrell based this portrait on a photograph of Davis giving a speech. He improvised on the photo's composition to show Davis wearing fellow artist Jae Jarrell's Revolutionary Suit . Also notable throughout the painting are Davis' uplifting phrases, including "Black is beautiful." Her poignant quote, "I have given my life in the struggle. If I have to lose my life, that is the way it will be," runs down her left arm and chest.

Acrylic and mixed media on canvas - Brooklyn Museum

Artist: Barbara Jones-Hogu

Unite shows a group of people, right fists raised, facing each other, expressing an activist stance of Black power and community. All wearing dark clothes, the figures' bodies and hair reflect the dark shadows and angular planes of African masks. The word UNITE is seen in multiple shards, sizes, and shapes in the background in a style reminiscent of collaged posters with vivid color and bold lettering. Along the bottom of the image is the signature of the artist, along with signatures of seven other artists from the AfriCOBRA group. Overall, the piece reflects a loud, proud, and strong unified body. The silkscreen print conveys the deep parallel that artists of AfricCOBRA and the Black Arts Movement had to the Black Power Movement and the Black Nationalist Movement. The work was created in the style of popular advertising billboards and posters of the time; a metaphor for widely disseminating and promoting the Black American voice. Artists were expressing their social and political views through the mouthpiece of creativity, stamping their own identities within their creative process, and modeling a uniquely contemporary Black aesthetic within the arts.

Screenprint - © Barbara Jones-Hogu, Collection of National Museum of African American History and Culture, Museum purchase, TR2008-24

Artist: Gerald Williams

In Wake Up , we see the head of a Black man floating amidst a colorful "cool-ade" array of bold lettered words and phrases such as "Awake," "Can You Dig," and "Check This Out." The words appear to be referring to a document in the man's hands, which can be seen as a manifesto of sorts, alluding to the group AfriCOBRA's manifesto. The piece was inspired by Williams' desire to get people to wake up socially, and to get involved with evolutionary change on a cultural and political level, much as he had been doing with his role in AfriCOBRA. In AfriCOBRA's manifesto, this call was instrumental: "It's NATION TIME and we are now searching. Our guidelines are our people -the whole family of African people, the African family tree. And in this spirit of familyhood, we have carefully examined our roots and searched our branches for those visual qualities that are more expressive of our people/art." This print was created as part of a suite of works with other members of AfriCOBRA for the show AFRICOBRA II in 1971 at the Studio Museum in Harlem. The print was taken from William's original painting made the year prior.

Screenprint on wove paper - Brooklyn Museum

Revolutionary Sister

Artist: Dindga McCannon

Revolutionary Sister presents a hybrid woman, marrying the American symbol of freedom, the statue of liberty, with the contemporary Black woman celebrated by the Black Arts Movement and Black Nationalism. Making bold fashion statements that included looks such as militant chic, wearing dynamic Afrocentric colors, and forging their own roads into the burgeoning regions of feminist empowerment, Black women were busy forming their own identities alongside the men. McCannon, in explaining her inspiration for making this piece, wrote: "In the 60s and 70s we didn't have many women warriors (that we were aware of), so I created my own. Her headpiece is made from recycled mini flag poles. The shape was inspired by my thoughts on the statue of liberty; she represents freedom for so many but what about us (African Americans)? My warrior is made from pieces from the hardware store - another place women were not welcomed back then. My thoughts were my warrior is hard as nails. I used a lot of the liberation colors: red - for the blood we shed; green - for the Motherland - Africa; and black - for the people. The bullet belt validates her warrior status. She doesn't need a gun; the power of change exists within her."

Mixed media construction on wood - Brooklyn Museum

The Liberation of Aunt Jemima

Artist: Betye Saar

In a shadow box, encased with a glass pane, we find three versions of the Southern Black slave/maid/mammy stereotype. The largest and most dominant figure is adorned in a red floral dress with a handkerchief wrapped around her head. In her right hand is a broom and in her left hand is a pistol. In front of her, smaller and painted on a piece of notepad paper, the likes that used to hang on walls in homes meant for task or grocery lists, is another Black woman holding a screaming white baby. The bottom half of her body is covered with an upraised Black fist, the symbol of Black Power. The third female representation lies in the repeating pattern in the background - a woman's jovial face displayed multiple times - a face that graced the bottles of Aunt Jemima, a popular American maple syrup brand of the time. These three impressions of the subservient and jovial Black woman were common tropes during the pre-1960s Jim Crow era, in which white people created, and widely disseminated, grotesque caricatures of Black people throughout mainstream American culture. By co-opting of these images and placing them in juxtaposing context with symbols of contemporary Black activism, the rifle and the fist, Saar not only showcased her strong feminist mission to help liberate and speak up and out for her Black sisters who had been pigeonholed in subservient roles, but also positioned her as a strong voice in the Black Arts Movement. According to Professor of Art History & Critical Studies Sunanda K. Sanyal, "The Black Panther party was founded in 1966 as the face of the militant Black Power movement that also foregrounded the role of Black women. Many creative activists were attracted to this new movement's assertive rhetoric of Black empowerment, which addressed both racial and gender marginalization." She goes on to say, "The centrality of the raised Black fist - the official gesture of the Black Power movement - in Saar's assemblage leaves no question about her political allegiance and vision for Black women." According to Angela Davis, a Black Panther activist, this piece by Saar, sparked the black women's movement.

Assemblage - Berkeley Art Museum

Beginnings of Black Arts Movement

The uprising and mainstream repositioning of Black identity in America bears historical roots dating back to 1917, when the New Negro social movement was founded by Hubert Harrison, referred to popularly during the 1920s' Harlem Renaissance .

The ideology behind the New Negro was instrumental in fostering assertiveness and self-confidence among modern Black populations within the United States. It signified Black empowerment and resistance to the Jim Crow Laws which upheld racial segregation.

The concept was further highlighted by philosopher Alain Locke in his 1925 anthology The New Negro , which highlighted cultural contributions by a myriad of Black visual artists and writers. Locke exclaimed that the New Negro was an "augury of a new democracy in American culture."

Amiri Baraka and Black Nationalism as an Artform

The Black Arts movement began in 1965 under the influence of American writer, poet, and cultural critic, Amiri Baraka. It was one of several movements that uprose, influenced by the assassination of Malcolm X on February 21, 1965, which sought to uplift and empower Black communities throughout the United States. Alongside the equally impactful Black Panther Party that centered on revolutionary political activity, the Black Arts Movement focused on revolutionary cultural expression.

Baraka founded the Black Arts Repertory Theater in Harlem, New York. The theater, which also operated as an arts school, was partially inspired by the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. Baraka's intent was to combine the artistic ingenuity and spirit fostered by Black artists during that era with the contemporary zeitgeist of the politically charged Black Power movement.

Theatrical productions developed by the Black Arts Repertory Theater gave Black artists and actors professional and social opportunities that were not readily available to them in mainstream cultural settings. Plays became symbolic expressions of daily life within Black communities. Themes included the reality of struggles with segregation and racial bias due to living under a white hegemonic society.

At the upstart of the Black Arts Movement, theater and poetry took precedence. Baraka's poem, "Black Art," published in The Liberator in 1966, was a call to arms for Black artists to galvanize and assert themselves using language and aesthetic expressions that were uniquely indicative of the Black experience. In the poem, Baraka wrote: "We want a black poem. And a / Black World. / Let the world be a Black Poem / And Let All Black People Speak This Poem / Silently / or LOUD."

In addition to Baraka, other notable Black Arts Movement authors and poets include Audre Lorde, James Baldwin, Gil Scott-Heron, Sonia Sanchez, Nikki Giovanni, Dudley Randall, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Maya Angelou. The movement also highlighted the work of Black visual artists. Baraka's circle of fine artists included Figurative Expressionist painter Bob Thompson , who painted a portrait of Baraka and his wife Jewish-American poet Hettie Jones, and their children Kellie and Lisa. Baraka's 1969 poem "Babylon Revisited," is a tragic homage to Thompson, who died of a heroin overdose.

Jazz music also played a significant role in the contextualization and proliferation of the movement. Baraka believed that music such as jazz and rhythm and blues could express profound political messages and social messages throughout Black culture. The blues, according to Baraka in his 1963 book Blues People , has a lyrical and cultural connection between African Americans and their roots prior to being enslaved in the Americas. It represents a distinctly empowered Black voice and language within a white cultural hegemony.

The Black Arts Movement quickly expanded to other major cities throughout the United States.

Black World and the Organization of Black American Culture

In 1942 in Chicago, John H. Johnson founded and published a cultural periodical called Negro Digest . However, due to low sales and the popularity of Johnson's other Black-centered magazines Ebony and Jet , production of Negro World stopped in 1951. However, beginning in 1961 the magazine returned. In collaboration with writer and intellectual Hoyt W. Fuller, Johnson rebranded the magazine as Black World . The name change coincided with calls from activists to use the word Black instead of Negro.

The second iteration of the publication was far more successful. Black World extended its content to cover cultural, political, and social issues related to everyday Black experiences in the United States and the African diaspora at large. Issues generally consisted of journalistic articles, short stories, poems, and a special section called "Perspectives," curated by Fuller that featured unique and timely cultural information. Black World also highlighted works of visual art via reproductions of artwork by Black artists.

In May 1967, Fuller and several other Black activists, academics, and cultural producers formed the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC). The mission of OBAC was to address freedom, equality, and social justice through the arts. According to OBAC's founding documents, their mission was to "work toward the ultimate goal of bringing the Black Community indigenous art forms which reflect and clarify the Black Experience in America; reflect the richness and depth and variety of Black History and Culture; and provide the Black Community with a positive self-image of itself, its history, its achievements, and its possibility for creativity."

OBAC held workshops for writers, actors, playwrights, and visual artists. Alumni and participants from these creative workshops included artists William Walker, Wadsworth Jarrell, and Jeff Donaldson; actors and playwrights: Dr. Ann Smith, Bill Eaves, Len Jones, Harold Lee, and Clarence Taylor; writers: Don L. Lee (known as Haki Madhubuti), Carolyn Rodgers, Angela Jackson, Sterling Plumpp, Sam Greenlee, Nikki Giovanni, Sonia Sanchez, and Johari Amini.

Among the most notable artistic contributions created during OBAC's operation is the Wall of Respect , an outdoor mural painted in 1967, which paid tribute to notable Black individuals throughout modern history. The mural is considered one of the first large-scale outdoor community-based murals in the United States. The OBAC Drama Workshop also influenced the foundation of the Kuumba Theater, which was Chicago's first Black run theater.

Visual artists associated with OBAC and those who participated in the Wall of Respect mural, went on to form the AfriCOBRA artists collective in 1968. Founding members were Jeff Donaldson, Wadsworth Jarrell, Jae Jarrell, Barbara Jones-Hogu, Nelson Stevens, and Gerald Williams. The title of the group is an acronym for The African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists. The word bad means good in Black English slang and has been used culturally since at least the nineteenth century.

AfriCOBRA's establishment was due to the realization that as a collective, they could increase their visibility and confront segregation in both cultural and political sectors. Through showing their art together, AfriCOBRA sought to extend their reach to Black communities throughout the world. Art historian and educator Shana Klein explained, "In a society that has for so long depicted African American people according to the cruelest stereotypes and awful caricatures, the black artists of AfriCOBRA set out to create African American art on their own terms and create a movement that spoke to both African American and black diasporic experiences."

The individual artists in the group created works of art that reflected the ideology of Afrocentrism by synthesizing imagery and motifs from cultures throughout the African diaspora. Many of the artists worked in printmaking to make their art more accessible to larger audiences. The form and content within AfriCOBRA alluded to a spectrum of past and present modes of art. Art historian Kirstin Ellsworth noted that they "elucidated an agenda for Black visual aesthetics within a contemporary visual idiom that combined Pop Art, poster art, commercial art techniques, lettering, and fragment-like patterning associated historically with African American artists including Romare Bearden , Jacob Lawrence , and John Biggers."

According the AfriCOBRA's manifesto, written by Donaldson, the major aesthetic tenets behind the group's operation included: 1. Definition: images that deal with the past. 2. Identification: images that relate to the present. 3. Direction: images that look into the future.

Also, according to Donaldson, much of AfriCOBRA's aesthetic reflected a transAfrican style, characterized by "high energy color, rhythmic linear effects, flat patterning, form-filled composition and picture plane compartmentalization." Distinguished AfriCOBRA member, Barbara Jones-Hogu, wrote how the works were created "...using syncopated, rhythmic repetition that constantly changes in color, texture, shapes, form, pattern, and feature."

In 1970, AfriCOBRA's first exhibition at a major museum, titled Ten in Search of a Nation , opened at the Studio Museum in Harlem, New York. The exhibition traveled to the Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Arts in Boston and Black Expo in Chicago. African American art scholar Corey Serrant wrote that "the work they produced [for the exhibition] was created with a singular purpose: to educate. They did not want to promote individual gains over their unified message. Poster reproductions of the works were given to exhibition attendees to take home, to better experience the spirituality and symbolism of the art shown." Jae Jarrell reinforced the pedagogical impetus behind AfriCOBRA in a 2012 interview: "We made an effort to raise consciousness. In our hearts, when we put this all together we thought it was going to be an explosion of positive imagery, and things that gave kids direction, and knowing some of our leaders now portrayed in a fresh way. I saw a result of our raising consciousness, particularly about our history."

In 1977, AfriCOBRA participated in Festac '77, also called the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, held in Lagos, Nigeria. This international event showcased the work and ideas of artists and academics within the Pan-Africanist movement. At the time, it was the largest convention of cultural contributions representing the African diaspora.

AfriCOBRA's work collectively carved a unique place within both artistic and political circles. Serrant assessed that "The artists of AfriCOBRA had no reason to appeal to critics that omitted them from the timeline of art and concurrent movements. The works produced by these artists were intended to empower the black community. They strove to create images that expressed the depth of black culture and Pan-Africanism, embracing a family tree with branches stretching beyond the United States, reaching the Caribbean and African ancestral homes."

Emory Douglas' Revolutionary Aesthetics

The Black Panther Party had its own art and design wing and artistic director named Emory Douglas. Douglas joined the Black Panther Party in 1967 after meeting Black Panther party co-founders Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale.

Douglas came into the Black Panther Party with a background in the visual arts. He studied graphic design at the City College of San Francisco, where he was a member of the school's Black Students' Association . As a student, he collaborated with Amiri Baraka to design sets and props for theatrical performances.

Douglas convinced Newton and Seale that he could enhance the design of the Black Panther Party's newspaper, The Black Panther , and he became the party's Minister of Culture. In addition to livening up the party's periodical by incorporating colorful layouts, Douglas made graphics that supported the revolutionary tenets behind the Black Panther Party's mission and expressed the sentiment behind the Black Nationalist ideology.

Douglas' style of art incorporated revolutionary signs and symbols from the Black Nationalist movement and iconography that represents Black empowerment and resistance to white supremacy. His no-holds-barred imagery includes biting critiques addressing the corruption of white political leaders and police brutality. In 2007, Jessica Werner Zack wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle that Douglas, "branded the militant-chic Panther image decades before the concept became commonplace. He used the newspaper's popularity (circulation neared 400,000 at its peak in 1970) to incite the disenfranchised to action, portraying the poor with genuine empathy, not as victims but as outraged, unapologetic and ready for a fight."

The Black Emergency Cultural Coalition

In New York City, Black artists, academics, and cultural activists also collectively organized to advocate for more opportunities, visibility, and agency for Black artists in cultural institutions.

The first instance of galvanized activity occurred in January 1969, in response to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Harlem on My Mind exhibition. The exhibition was considered offensive to Black artists, scholars, and curators due to the exclusion of work by Harlem-based artists. Large groups of Black cultural workers gathered outside of the Metropolitan Museum of Art to protest the exhibition, which led to a highly publicized account of inequality and inequity within the institutionalized arts and cultural scene.

The strong communal response to Harlem on My Mind influenced artists Benny Andrews and Clifford R. Joseph to establish the Black Emergency Cultural Coalition (BECC). The group's mission was to actively bring about changes in the cultural sector that reflect the overarching Civil Rights movement. BECC fought for greater representation and opportunities for Black artists, such as advocating for museums to collect the work of contemporary Black artists, as well as for the foundation of Black-centered cultural venues. They also sought to have a significant number of Black curators employed in major art institutions.

After the Harlem on My Mind protests, BECC was involved in talks with the Whitney Museum of American Art's leadership regarding the representation of Black artists, curators, and arts administrators in present and future exhibitions and public programming. They discussed collaborating on a major exhibition showcasing African American art which would have extensive input from the Black arts community. However, the talks ended up in a stalemate. Art critic, Grace Glueck wrote in a New York Times article that "that the Whitney Museum reneged on two fundamental points of agreement - that the exhibition would be selected with the assistance of black art specialists, and that it would be presented during the most prestigious period of the 1970-71 art season." The museum did end up organizing Contemporary Black Artists in America .

The exhibition was curated by Robert M. Doty, a white curator, without the guidance and perspective of Black artists, art historians, and curators. BECC opposed the exhibition by curating Rebuttal to the Whitney Museum at Acts of Art Gallery. Both exhibitions opened on April 6, 1971. Additionally, fifteen of the seventy-five artists from the Whitney Museum's exhibition were motivated to withdraw from Contemporary Black Artists in America in solidarity with BECC's boycott of the show.

BECC's cultural outreach included the creation of the Arts Exchange program in 1971, which was an arts-centered social justice initiative addressing issues related to mass incarceration. The program was spurred by the deadly riots at the Attica Correctional Facility in Upstate New York, which highlighted the need for greater human rights in prisons and the humane treatment of inmates. BECC advocated for sponsored art programs in prisons, as well as mental health facilities and public schools. The first class of the Arts Exchange program was held at the Manhattan House of Detention in September 1971. By 1972, the classes were implemented in twenty states.

Benny Andrews continued to foster opportunities for marginalized professional artists while serving as the Director of the Visual Arts Program for the National Endowment for the Arts from 1982 through 1984.

David Driskell and Curating Two Centuries of Black American Art

David Driskell was an artist, educator, collector, and curator. His ability to assume many roles was integral in the Black Arts Movement's proliferation throughout mainstream culture. In 1976, Driskell organized the exhibition Two Centuries of Black American Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). Akin to what some might call a "blockbuster exhibition," it was one of the most renowned and high-profile shows to solely feature Black artists. More than 200 works of art by sixty-three artists were featured. Additionally, Driskell highlighted the artisan work of anonymous craft-makers.

Altogether, the show and its supplementary scholarship and publication provided an essential narrative of the contributions by Black artists and crafts workers throughout the course of visual culture in the United States. According to a feature on Driskell written by journalist Pamela Newkirk and published in ARTnews , Two Centuries of Black American Art has "staked a claim for the profound and indelible contributions of black and African American art makers since the earliest days of the country." After LACMA, the exhibition traveled cross-country, with stops at the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, and the Brooklyn Museum.

Throughout his career Driskell collected a wide variety of art from the African diaspora including tribal objects, crafts, folk art, and modern and contemporary art. This personal collection has been utilized as an informative means to promote the work of Black artists in institutions and art galleries across the United States. A 2000 thematic exhibition at the High Museum of Art called, Narratives of African American Art and Identity: The David C. Driskell Collection , showcased a large selection of key works of drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, craft, and photography. Some of the notable artists included Elizabeth Catlett, Hale Woodruff, Augusta Savage , Aaron Douglas , and James Van Der Zee. The five themes addressed in the exhibition were organized chronologically starting with the nineteenth and early twentieth century and ending in the contemporary era. The themes were: Strategic Subversions: Cultural Emancipation, Assimilation and African American Identity; Emergence: The New Negro Movement and Definitions of Race; The Black Academy: Teachers, Mentors, and Institutional Patronage; Radical Politics, Protest and Art; and Diaspora Identities/Global Arts .

Concepts and Styles

Black nationalism and pan-africanism.

Black Nationalism is an activist movement with roots dating back to United States abolitionism during the Revolutionary War period. Pan-Africanism is a worldwide movement with an intent to form social and cultural solidarity among all peoples of the African diaspora. Its historical origins are in the early nineteenth century Black abolitionist movement. These concepts are intended to inspire the cultural, economic, political, and social empowerment of Black communities.

The modern Black Nationalist movement of the twentieth century was significantly impacted by Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican immigrant who established the United Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) in 1914, which Garvey explained was "organized for the absolute purpose of bettering our condition, industrially, commercially, socially, religiously and politically." Garvey's advocacy for unity among Black people from the African diaspora reflected prior Black Nationalist ideologies including Martin Delany's nineteenth century proposal for recently freed Black slaves to return to Africa and collaborate with Indigenous Africans for the purpose of universal nation building. The Pan-Africanist theory posits that Black people of the African diaspora share both a common history and destiny.

Black Nationalist principles strongly eschew white supremacist structures and resist Black assimilation into white culture. The overarching goal within Black Nationalism is to maintain a strong and distinct Black identity. During the 1960s, the Black Nationalist movement was influenced by Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam. Black Nationalists countered certain Civil Rights activists who they felt were not radical enough. Art historian Kirstin Ellsworth explained, "Black Power and Black Liberation movements associated the demands for equality within the American Civil Rights Movement with the objectives of oppressed peoples around the world."

Black Nationalism's reach has extended to institutions such as schools, museums, and churches with each venue focused on providing aid, education, and platform for Black individuals and communities to express themselves intellectually, creatively, and spiritually.

The Black Aesthetic

Through contextualizing the Black Arts Movement, Baraka and others developed a theory of the Black Aesthetic. The broad term includes works of visual art, poetry, literature, music, and theater centered around the Black experience in contemporary society. In 1968, Larry Neal, a renowned scholar of Black theater explained that the Black Arts Movement was the "aesthetic and spiritual sister of the Black Power concept."

The Black Aesthetic was not interested in race assimilation. It was not a major concern for Black art and artists to be integrated within the prevailing white culture. The Black Arts Movement prompted Black artists to counter the marginalization of Black culture within a white hegemonic society by celebrating the profound and diverse contributions within the African diaspora.

The Black Aesthetic represented the fluctuation of African American identity through a revolutionary lens. Artworks depicting the Black Aesthetic highlighted the value of maintaining strong Black communities and confronting social issues affecting Black individuals and groups. Visual artwork, such as paintings by Bob Thompson and Wadsworth Jarrell, incorporated a vibrant palette that alluded to the tonality of Black jazz musicians. In addition to utilizing a rich spectrum of color, the Black Aesthetic in visual art was replete with symbols and representations of Black cultural prowess. Popular subject matter included jazz musicians and political activists. Jae Jarrell likened the artwork of AfriCOBRA members to the music made by their jazz peers, stating that, "the unity in our voice, what it does is it behaves very much like a jazz concert, where one person solos and somebody ups him, and you're all building the grid."

Cultural critic Candice Frederick wrote, "In acknowledging the historical usage of the term and understanding Blackness to be iterative - something that is evolving, abundant, and prolific - we can begin to understand that the creativity of Black people contributes, always, to a Black aesthetic."

Identity Art and Identity Politics

The 1960s saw the beginning of the Identity Art and Identity Politics movement, in which many artists began using art to interrogate social perceptions of their identity, and critique systemic issues that marginalized them in society. Black artists, representing an entire race, became a major voice in this arena which included women artists, LGBTQ+ artists, disabled artists, and indigenous artists. The burgeoning outpour of Black art and Black activism caused a discernible presence of contemporary Blackness in society in a way that could no longer be ignored, stereotyped, or pigeonholed, spurring identifying aesthetics that would come to be synonymous with the emerging of the long-suppressed Black voice in contemporary culture.

Often appearing in the works of AfriCOBRA artists, then emerging amongst the Black Arts collective, were "cool-ade" colors, a clever riff co-opted from the name of the popular powdered drink brand Kool-Aid. Artist Wadsworth Jarrell explained, "The colors we were using were part of the AfriCOBRA philosophy we call 'cool-ade colors,' which related to the colors that African Americans were wearing in the '60s all over the country." Barbara Jones-Hogu described these hues as "bright, vivid, singing cool-ade colors of orange, strawberry, cherry, lemon, lime, and grape. Pure vivid colors of the sun and nature."

"Militant chic" fashion also emerged during this time. Inspired by the uniform of the militant group, the Black Panthers, many Black designers started using Kente cloth in their fashions, as well as ammunition strips as belts. The Afro (a natural African hairstyle) became a championed signature and de riguer . Both Jae Jarrell's Revolutionary Suit , and Dindga McCannon's Revolutionary Sister highlighted these styles, bringing clothing as communal identity to the movement.

Later Developments - After Black Arts Movement

Major artists who were associated with the Black Arts Movement would come to include Betye Saar , Cleveland Bellow, Kay Brown, Marie Johnson Calloway, Ben Hazard, Ben Jones, Carolyn Lawrence, and Dingda McCannon.

The Black Arts Movement dissipated in the mid-1970s after Baraka transitioned from Black Nationalist ideology to Marxism. He stated, "I think fundamentally my intentions are similar to those I had when I was a Nationalist. That might seem contradictory, but they were similar in the sense I see art as a weapon, and a weapon of revolution. It's just now that I define revolution in Marxist terms. Once defined revolution in Nationalist terms. But I came to my Marxist view as a result of having struggled as a Nationalist and found certain dead ends theoretically and ideologically, as far as Nationalism was concerned and had to reach out for a communist ideology."

Although Marxism represented a significant shift in ideology, Baraka's socialist-inspired art still centered around empowering and galvanizing the Black community, which author and editor William J. Harris notes in the introduction to The LeRoi Jones / Amiri Baraka Reader .

The legacy of the Black Arts Movement is clear from the number of significant works of art, theater, and literature created during its span, as well as the proliferation of publishing houses, magazines, art institutions, and collectives established by Black individuals since.

James Smethurst, a scholar, and historian of African American Studies, mentioned that: "the Black Arts movement produced some of the most exciting poetry, drama, dance, music, visual art, and fiction of the post-World War II United States." He went on to explain that the movement was unique for reaching "a non-elite, transregional, mass African American audience to an extent that was unprecedented for such a formally (not to mention politically) radical body of art."

Although the Black Arts Movement and AfriCOBRA formally dissolved in the 1970s, the principles behind the Black Aesthetic remain relevant and have influenced pursuant generations of artists and collectives including Titus Kaphar, Mickalene Thomas, the Black Lunch Table, and the Black School. This continual focus on providing platforms for the lives and work of Black artists reflects Wadsworth Jarrell's assessment that the "AfriCOBRA influence never leaves. It became a part of you, like breathing."

The overall influence of the Black Arts Movement, and efforts from individual Black artists led to the foundation of African American Studies programs in colleges and universities. One example is the W. E. B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies program at University of Massachusetts Amherst, which was founded by long-term faculty members including AfriCOBRA artist and educator, Nelson Stevens.

The Black Arts Movement has been reexamined in major museum retrospectives such as the 2017 exhibition Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power , which was displayed at the Tate Modern in London, as well as several United States venues, including Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Brooklyn Museum, the de Young, and The Broad. Another major exhibition surveying artwork and ephemeral materials from the Black Arts Movement era was AfriCOBRA: Nation Time , which was on view during the 58th Biennale di Venezia held at the palazzo of Ca'Faccanon in Venice, Italy in 2019.

In the early twenty-first century, curator Thelma Golden used the term "Post-Black art" to describe a contemporary zeitgeist of Black artists who were "adamant about not being labeled 'Black' artists, though their work was steeped, in fact deeply interested, in redefining complex notions of Blackness." The paradoxical genre reflects art about the Black experience that simultaneously posits the idea that race does not matter within the context of the work's message. Noted artists working in this realm today are Kori Newkirk, Laylah Ali, Eric Wesley, Senam Okudzeto, David McKenzie, Susan Smith-Pinelo, Sanford Biggers, Louis Cameron, Deborah Grant, Rashid Johnson, Arnold Kemp, Julie Mehretu , Mark Bradford, and Jennie C. Jones.

Useful Resources on Black Arts Movement

• The LeRoi Jones / Amiri Baraka Reader By Amiri Baraka and William J. Harris
• The Black Arts Movement: Literary Nationalism in the 1960s and 1970s By James Smethurst
• For All the World to See: Visual Culture and the Struggle for Civil Rights By Maurice Berger
• Building the Black Arts Movement: Hoyt Fuller and the Cultural Politics of the 1960s By Jonathan Fenderson
• New Thoughts on the Black Arts Movement By Margo Natalie Crawford and Lisa Gail Collins
• The Wall of Respect: Public Art and Black Liberation in 1960s Chicago By Romi Crawford
• Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power By Mark Godfrey, Zoé Whitley, Linda Goode Bryant, David Driskell, Edmund Gaither, Jae Jarrell, Wadsworth Jarrell, and Samella Lewis
• The Black Arts Movement in the National Archives
• How David C. Driskell Shaped the Story of Black Art in America: From the Archives By Pamela Newkirk / ArtNews / May 2000
• Author Amiri Baraka: 'Tales of the Out & the Gone By Farai Chideya / NPR / January 9, 2007
• The revolutionary art of Emory Douglas, Black Panther The Guardian / October 27, 2008
• Africobra and the Negotiation of Visual Afrocentrisms By Kirstin L. Ellsworth / Civilisations / Vol. 58, no. 1, 2009, pp. 21-38.
• Wadsworth and Jae Jarrell By Rebecca Zorach / Never the Same / 2012
• Chicago's Wall of Respect: how a mural elicited a sense of collective ownership By Ben Campkin, Mariana Mogilevich, and Rebecca Ross / The Guardian / December 8, 2014
• Chicago's 'Wall of Respect' inspired neighborhood murals across U.S. By Patrick T. Reardon / Chicago Tribune / July 29, 2017
• Women of the Black Arts Movement By Femi Lewis / ThoughtCo / May 30, 2019
• Body and Soul By Kanitra Fletcher / The Houston Museum of Fine Arts / February 22, 2020
• Artist Noah Purifoy Saw Value in the Discarded. What if L.A. Didn't Throw People Away? By Ismail Muhammad / Los Angeles Times / May 26, 2021
• Black Power Art
• Malcolm X and the Black Arts Movement
• I See You: A Conversation with Jae Jarrell and Jeffreen M. Hayes PhD
• The Black Arts Movement and Politics - Nikki Giovanni
• Talib Kweli & Sonia Sanchez On The Black Arts Movement, Amiri Baraka, Hip Hop
• Jack Whitten - 'The Political is in the Work'

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Black Arts movement

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• BlackPast - The Black Arts Movement
• Modern American Poetry - Historical Overviews of The Black Arts Movement

Black Arts movement , period of artistic and literary development among black Americans in the 1960s and early ’70s.

Based on the cultural politics of black nationalism , which were developed into a set of theories referred to as the Black Aesthetic , the movement sought to create a populist art form to promote the idea of black separatism. Many adherents viewed the artist as an activist responsible for the formation of racially separate publishing houses, theatre troupes, and study groups. The literature of the movement, generally written in black English vernacular and confrontational in tone, addressed such issues as interracial tension, sociopolitical awareness, and the relevance of African history and culture to blacks in the United States . (For a more-detailed account of the role of literature within the Black Arts movement, see African American literature .)

Leading theorists of the Black Arts movement included Houston A. Baker, Jr. ; Carolyn M. Rodgers ; Addison Gayle, Jr., editor of the anthology The Black Aesthetic (1971); Hoyt W. Fuller, editor of the journal Negro Digest (which became Black World in 1970); and LeRoi Jones and Larry Neal, editors of Black Fire: An Anthology of Afro-American Writing (1968). Jones, later known as Amiri Baraka , wrote the critically acclaimed play Dutchman (1964) and founded the Black Arts Repertory Theatre in Harlem (1965). Haki R. Madhubuti , known as Don L. Lee until 1973, became one of the movement’s most popular writers with the publication of Think Black (1967) and Black Pride (1968). Among other writers who engaged with the movement were Toni Morrison , Ishmael Reed , Ntozake Shange , Sonia Sanchez , Alice Walker , and June Jordan .

African American Heritage

Black Arts Movement (1965-1975)

The Black Arts Movement was a Black nationalism movement that focused on music, literature, drama, and the visual arts made up of Black artists and intellectuals. This was the cultural section of the Black Power movement, in that its participants shared many of the ideologies of Black self-determination, political beliefs, and African American culture.

The Black Arts Movement started in 1965 when poet Amiri Baraka [LeRoi Jones] established the Black Arts Repertory Theater in Harlem, New York, as a place for artistic expression. Artists associated with this movement include Audre Lorde, Ntozake Shange, James Baldwin, Gil Scott-Heron, and Thelonious Monk. Records at the National Archives related to the Black Arts Movement primarily focus on individual artists and their interaction with various Federal agencies.

Search the Catalog for Records on the Black Arts Movement

Prominent Figures of the Black Arts Movement at the National Archives

Maya Angelou

Amiri Baraka

James Baldwin

Gwendolyn Brooks

Nikki Giovanni

Lorraine Hansberry

Maya Angelou (April 4, 1928 - May 28, 2014)

Marguerite “Maya” Johnson was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She was a writer, poet, activist, and actress. Angelou was exposed to the Civil Rights Movement and African culture during the 1960s. In the 1970s, she began her writing career, focusing on stories and anecdotes based on her life, Blackness, and feminism. In 1993, Angelou became the first poet to recite a poem at a presidential inauguration since 1961. Records at the National Archives related to Maya Angelou consist of appearances at Federal events and her time on tour with a production of Porgy & Bess .

Social Networks and Archival Context - Maya Angelou

Angelou Reciting "On the Pulse of Morning" at the Inauguration of President Clinton, January 20, 1993; Photo ID: P00162_24; William J. Clinton Presidential Library

Amiri baraka [everett leroi jones] (october 7, 1934 - january 9, 2014).

Amiri Baraka was born Everett LeRoi Jones in Newark, New Jersey on October 7, 1934. In 1954 he earned a bachelor’s degree in English at Howard University. Following graduation, Jones joined the military and served three years in the Air Force. After receiving a honorable discharge, he settled in Greenwich Village in New York and began to interact with various musicians and artists. While living in New York, Jones became a well-respected novelist and poet for his writings on Black liberation and white racism. He also met Hettie Cohen, a Jewish writer. Later on, the two married and co-edited the literary magazine Yugen . They also founded Totem Press, which focused on publishing the works of political activists. Jones taught at several colleges and universities before changing his name to Amiri Baraka. Baraka continued to publish literary works for over 50 years until his death in 2014. Records at the National Archives pertaining to Amiri Baraka include a sound recording of Baraka reciting a poem that was considered to be an un-American activity.

Social Networks and Archival Context - Amiri Baraka

James Baldwin (August 2, 1924 - December 1, 1987)

James baldwin and marlon brando at the march on washington, august 28, 1963 ( naid 542060 ).

James Arthur Baldwin was born August 2, 1924 in Harlem, New York. After graduating from high school in 1942, Baldwin began writing. In 1953, he published his first novel  Go Tell It on the Mountain . Prior to releasing his first novel, Baldwin chose to leave America and move to France because of his dissatisfaction with the open racism and homophobia in the United States. In 1962, he visited the United States in order to participate in the the Civil Rights Movement, namely attending the March on Washington (seen in the photo). During the height of the struggle for Black equality, Baldwin was widely known for his militant essays that illustrated the social and economic plight of Black Americans. His writings addressed the issues of race but also mentioned the complexity of homosexuality and sexual orientation among the Black experience in the U.S. After the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  in 1968, Baldwin returned to France and continued writing until his death in 1987. Records at the National Archives pertaining to James Baldwin include moving images from the Peace Corps, the Agency for International Development and an interview with Pulitzer Prize winner Gwendolyn Brooks.

Social Networks and Archival Context - James Baldwin

Gwendolyn Brooks (June 7, 1917 to December 3, 2000)

Gwendolyn Brooks was an American poet and teacher and is known as the first African American woman to win a Pulitzer when she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for her work  Annie Allen (1950). Brooks was born on June 7, 1917 in Topeka, Kansas. Six weeks after her birth, the Brooks family moved to Chicago. Growing up in Chicago and attending majority white, then Black, and then integrated schools gave Brooks a varied perspective on racial dynamics in America which would later come to influence her future work. In the 1940s Brooks became heavily involved in attending poetry workshops in Chicago, in particular workshops organized by Inez Cunningham Stark. World renowned poet Langston Hughes stopped by one of these workshops and after hearing her recite her poem "The Ballad of Pearl May Lee” he became a fan of her work and acted as her mentor.

She published several works of poetry including A Street in Bronzeville (1945), and In the Mecca (1968) which both earned critical acclaim. One of her better known poems “We Real Cool” was published in her third book of poetry, The Bean Eaters (1960), and is widely studied in literature classes and re-printed in literature textbooks. Brooks taught poetry and writing around the country at several well known colleges and universities such as the University of Chicago, Columbia University, and Elmhurst College and continued on in that respect until her death on December 3, 2000 in her hometown of Chicago.

Social Networks and Archival Context - Gwendolyn Brooks

Nikki Giovanni (June 7, 1943)

Nikki Giovanni is an American poet, writer, commentator, activist, and educator. Giovanni was born as Yolande Cornelia "Nikki" Giovanni, Jr. on June 7, 1943 in Knoxville, Tennessee. She attended Fisk University receiving a B.A. in History and later went on to attend graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania and Columbia University. Giovanni’s work covers topics ranging from race and social issues explored through poetry anthologies, poetry recordings, and nonfiction essays. She was a prominent figure in the Black Arts Movement of the late 1960s and her work was heavily influenced by the Civil Rights Movement and the Black Power Movement. Her poetry during this period in  Black Feeling, Black Talk and Black Judgement , reflected a strong African American perspective and because of this she was hailed as the "Poet of the Black Revolution." Over the years Giovanni would shift her focus to children’s literature, human relationships, women writers, and hip hop. Currently, Giovanni works as an University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech where she teaches courses on writing and poetry.

Social Networks and Archival Context - Nikki Giovanni

Lorraine Hansberry (May 19, 1930 - January 12, 1965)

A native of Chicago, Illinois Lorraine Hansberry is known as one of the most significant and influential playwrights of the 20th century. She wrote the landmark play A Raisin in the Sun , which opened at Ethel Barrymore Theatre in New York City in 1959.  A Raisin in the Sun was the first play written by an African American woman to be produced on Broadway. The play depicted the characteristics, emotions, and struggles of an urban Black family and eventually won a New York Drama Critics Circle Award and four Tonys for best play, director, actress and actor. Because of the success of the play, Hansberry was credited for breaking down racial barriers on Broadway and ushering in a new opportunity for African American women playwrights. 

In 1961, she wrote the screenplay to A Raisin in the Sun  in order to turn the play into a movie. The movie staring Sidney Poitier and Ruby Dee became as successful as the play and allowed the actors to gain considerable recognition for their roles. Hansberry’s second play, and only other production put on in her lifetime,  The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window  ran for 101 performances. The day that the play closed was the same day that Hansberry died at the age of 34 from pancreatic cancer. Hansberry had many other works, including writings for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) , and contributions to lesbian rights organizations. Records at the National Archives pertaining to Lorraine Hansberry include moving images among the records of the Agency for International Development and sound recordings of a radio broadcast.

Social Media and Archival Contexts - Lorraine Hansberry

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Black is Beautiful: The Emergence of Black Culture and Identity in the 60s and 70s

The phrase “black is beautiful” referred to a broad embrace of black culture and identity. It called for an appreciation of the black past as a worthy legacy, and it inspired cultural pride in contemporary black achievements.

Pride and Power Black Americans donned styles connected to African heritage. Using a grooming tool like an Afro pick customized with a black fist was a way to proudly assert political and cultural allegiance to the Black Power movement.

(left) A wooden Afro-pick comb from Ghana, 1950. G ift of the Family of William & Mattye Reed.  2014.182.99 (right) Afro-pick manufactured by Eden Enterprise, Inc. The pick has a black molded plastic handle shaped like a raised fist. G ift of Elaine Nichols .  2014.125.1

A Cultural Revolution “Black is beautiful” also manifested itself in the arts and scholarship. Black writers used their creativity to support a black cultural revolution. Scholars urged black Americans to regain connections to the African continent. Some studied Swahili, a language spoken in Kenya, Tanzania and the southeastern regions of Africa.

Publication cover of "Negro Digest," July 1969.  2014.154.11

Across this country, young black men and women have been infected with a fever of affirmation. They are saying, ‘We are black and beautiful.’ Hoyt Fuller 1968

“I’m So Pretty” Muhammad Ali’s style of boxing boasted its own brand of beauty. His graceful footwork and charismatic confidence attracted audiences to his moves and his message. 

Icons of the Black Arts Movement The beginnings of the Black Arts Movement solidified around the arts-activism of Amiri Baraka (formerly LeRoi Jones) in the mid-1960s. A poet, playwright and publisher, Baraka was a founder of the Black Arts Repertory Theatre/School in Harlem and Spirit House in Newark, N.J., his hometown. Baraka’s initiatives on the East Coast were paralleled by black arts organizations in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, New Orleans and San Francisco, leading to a national movement.

Poet, playwright and political activist Amiri Baraka addresses the 1972 National Black Political Convention in Gary, Ind. 

"Some people say we got a lot of malice Some say it's a lotta nerve But I say we won't quit movin' Until we get what we deserve ... Say it loud - I'm black and I'm proud!"

JAMES BROWN Lyrics from "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud," 1968. © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

Negro Es Bello II, by Elizabeth Catlett, 1969 Negro Es Bello translates from Spanish as “black is beautiful.” Placing those words alongside panther imagery, the artist connects black pride with Black Power.

"The Black Aesthetic" (Doubleday, 1971), by scholar Addison Gayle, are essays that call for black artists to create and evaluate their works based on criteria relevant to black life and culture. Their aesthetics, or the values of beauty associated with the works of art, should be a reflection of their African heritage and worldview, not European dogma, the contributors stated. A black aesthetic would embolden black people to honor their own beauty and power.

"The Black Aesthetic," by Addison Gayle

Race and Representation Problems of race and representation emerged in popular entertainment as well as in politics. In the 1967 film "Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner," audiences were encouraged to identify positively with Sidney Poitier’s portrayal of a well-mannered black doctor with a white fiancée, only six months after interracial marriage was made legal in all states. In Alex Haley's "Roots", the ground-breaking 1977 television mini-series, viewers were unapologetically confronted with the brutality and rupture of American slavery, and the horrors African Americans experienced at the hands of white slaveholders.

Shifting the Lens In 1967, interracial marriage gets a feel-good treatment in the film "Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner."  2013.108.9.1

(left) Lobby card for the film.

Popular Culture Prior to the mid-1960s, African Americans appeared in popular culture as musical entertainers, sports figures, and in stereotypical servant roles on screen. Empowered by the black cultural movement, African Americans increasingly demanded more roles and more realistic images of their lives, both in mainstream and black media. Black journalists used the talk-show format to air community concerns. Television programs featuring black actors attracted advertisers who tapped into a growing black consumer base.

"The Flip Wilson Show" This popular, one-hour variety shown ran on NBC from 1970-74.

(left) Time magazine (Vol. 99, No. 5) cover from 1972 featuring a drawing of Flip Wilson.  2014.183.4

"Julia" Diahann Carroll won a Golden Globe Award for Best TV Actress, Musical/Comedy in 1969 for "Julia" where she starred as a nurse, widow, and single mother in this situation comedy. Her role was one of the first portrayals of a black professional woman on television. 

Lunchbox printed with illustrations of actors from the sitcom "Julia," 1969.  2013.108.13ab

Having a Say Black journalists and filmmakers produced public affairs television programs in major cities. Community concerns and international affairs guided the shows, including "Say Brother" in Boston and "Right On!" in Cincinnati. "Soul!" and "Black Journal" were broadcast nationally. Their topics ranged from the Black Power Movement to women’s roles, religion, homosexuality and family values. Radio programs similarly focused on agenda items important for sustaining and empowering black communities.

The TV show "Like It Is" focused on issues relevant to the African American community, produced and aired on WABC-TV in New York City between 1968 and 2011. Gil Noble hosts this special episode (below) from 1983 which explores the life and legacy of Malcolm X and the CIA's covert war to destroy him, featuring interviews with confidants Earl Grant and Robert Haggins. 

We use the video player Able Player to provide captions and audio descriptions. Able Player performs best using web browsers Google Chrome, Firefox, and Edge. If you are using Safari as your browser, use the play button to continue the video after each audio description. We apologize for the inconvenience.

"Like It Is" was a public affairs television program, WABC-TV in New York.

Television is on the brink of a revolutionary change ... The stations are changing - not because they like black people but because black people, too, own the airwaves and are forcing them to change. Tony Brown 1970

Soul Train This televised musical program featured in-studio dancers showcasing the latest moves. The show brought African American cultural expression into millions of non-black households. Photo circa 1970.  

Diana Ross and Billy Dee Williams Star in "Mahogany"  Released in 1975, Mahogany was a romantic drama that also explored the serious issue of gentrification through William’s character, a political activist in Chicago.

Subtitle here for the credits modal.

The New York Public Library

Archives & manuscripts, larry neal papers 1919-1985 [bulk 1961-1985].

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The Larry Neal papers document his role as a writer/editor and seminal figure in the Black Arts Movement, and consist principally of Neal's diverse forms of writings, including essays, scripts, screenplays, poems, short stories, and anthologies. Published copies of some of his writings are included in the collection, as are writings by colleagues and publishers.

Larry (Lawrence Paul) Neal was well-known as a writer, literary and music critic, and major catalyst for the Black Arts Movement of the 1960's and 1970s. Born September 5, 1937 in Atlanta, Georgia he grew up in Philadelphia and graduated from Roman Catholic High School. In 1961 he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in history and English from Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, and was a recipient of the Eichelburger Award for Creative Writing from that school. After graduating from college, Neal taught creative writing, a course entitled "Afro-American Literature and Cultural History," and other English courses at several universities including City College of New York, Case Western Reserve and Yale University between 1963 and 1976. In 1970 he was a recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship for Afro-American critical studies. Graduate courses in folklore completed in 1964 at the University of Pennsylvania provided Neal with the opportunity to develop his writing skills, but it was folk tales, slang and street chants that shaped his distinctive style of poetry.

In 1964 Neal moved from Philadelphia where he had been teaching at Drexel Institute of Technology to New York City. The following year he married Evelyn Rodgers, a chemist at Mount Sinai Hospital; they adopted a boy, Avatar, in 1971. The Neal's residence on Jumel Terrace in the Sugar Hill section of Harlem, purchased in 1971, served as a magnet for the creative individuals of the period, particularly literary figures whose works gained attention during the late 1960's and the early 1970's, including Amiri Baraka (Leroi Jones), Ishamel Reed, Quincy Troupe, Askia Muhammad Toure, Hoyt Fuller, Stanley Crouch, and Henry Dumas. During this period, Neal worked as a copywriter for John Wiley and Sons (1964), and wrote for Liberator magazine, a progressive journal of that time and a publication for which he eventually became arts editor. During his Liberator period (1964-1966) he wrote accounts of cultural events and conducted interviews with writers, artists, and musicians.

Neal's commitment to radical politics was demonstrated through his position as education director of the Black Panther Party and as a member of the Revolutionary Action Movement, both in the 1960's. Baraka has written that he and Neal initially met at a demonstration protesting Patrice Lumumba's 1961 assassination. Neal's relationship with Baraka became more firmly established after Neal wrote an article entitled The Development of Leroi Jones which discussed Baraka's transformation from a Beat poet to a revolutionary artist. Together with Askia Toure, Neal and Baraka became principal movers in a group that created the Black Arts Repertory Theatre School in Harlem in 1964. They produced a number of plays including Jones' Jello and Dutchman, and also initiated a series of poetry readings and concerts. The Black Arts Theatre attacked the values of the Establishment theater in New York and presented art that reflected Black life with its history of resistance and struggle. The theater was forced to close because of factionalism among the members and the cut of government funds (channeled through HARYOU-ACT) due to this theater's opposition to traditional theater and values. By now, however, the new direction forged in the theater became the impetus for the Black Arts Movement.

This movement by young Black artists in the 1960's sought to create art forms that would advance Black people's liberation. Neal described the Black Arts Movement as being radically opposed to any concept that alienates the artists from their community. Rather than fuse their ideas with the mainstream white culture, Black writers, plastic artists and musicians should speak directly to the needs and aspirations of Black America. Neal wrote that "Black Art is the aesthetic and spiritual sister of the Black Power concept." Both related to the African-American's desire for self-determination and nationhood. According to Neal, Black Arts was concerned with the relationship between art and politics; Black Power with the art of politics. The Black Arts Movement proposed a separate symbolism, mythology, critique and iconology. Individuals whose perceptions and art work were associated with the movement knew that their perception of reality was different from that of the white American majority.

Neal's belief in the centrality of African-American music to developing a Black aesthetic was expressed in essays he published in Negro Digest in 1966 and 1967. He, Baraka and A.B. Spellman also collaborated on a magazine, Cricket, a publication devoted to African-American music, which espoused a Black nationalistic philosophy. Although Cricket ceased publication after three issues, it served as a vehicle through which Black writers attempted to define Black art forms and aesthetics.

In 1968 Neal and Baraka edited Black Fire: An Anthology of Afro-American Writing, a significant publication for the Black Arts Movement, and Neal wrote two ground breaking essays that sought to define the movement. Still the seminal anthology of that period, Black Fire contains works by well-known social critics, poets and playwrights such as James Boggs, Ed Bullins, Sonia Sanchez, Stokely Carmichael, John Henrik Clarke, Harold Cruse, Henry Dumas, and Hoyt Fuller.

In addition to writing essays concerning such topics as the arts and artists, Harlem, and the death of Malcolm X, Neal served as a literary and music critic, writing essays about the works of Ralph Ellison, Zora Neale Hurston, Charlie Parker, and others. Among his many projects, Neal was responsible for the publication of a new edition of Hurston's autobiography, Dust Tracks on a Road, and for her novel, Jonah's Gourd Vine, for which he wrote the introductions (1971).

Neal also published two books of poetry: Black Boogaloo (1969) and Hoodoo Hollerin' Bebop Ghosts (1974). Black Boogaloo focuses on discovering the historical moment when Africans lost their connection with their gods and ancestors, thereby losing themselves. Hoodoo Hollerin' Bebop Ghosts, Neal's second volume of poetry, explores Black folk culture and figures, especially Black liberation and Shine. His dramatic works include The Glorious Monster in the Bell of the Horn and In an Upstate Motel, both of which were performed during Neal's lifetime as well as after his death. Lesser known as an arts administrator, Neal held the position of Executive Director for the District of Columbia Commission on the Arts and Humanities (1976-1979), a city agency that made grants to artists and organizations that encouraged the development of the arts in Black communities, including the Elma Louis School of Fine Arts in Roxbury, Massachusetts.

At his death of a heart attack at age forty-three, Neal was assisting the percussionist Max Roach to write his autobiography and had completed a jazz series for a Boston television station and a film script on musical improvisation for Clark College in Atlanta. Neal had nearly completed a book on the rise of Black consciousness in the 1960's he had entitled New Space: Critical Essays on American Culture. This book, published posthumously as Visions of a Liberated Future: Black Arts Movement Writings: Larry Neal (New York, Thunder's Mouth Press, 1989) is a compilation of selected works by Neal (encompassing poetry, essays, and drama); many entries were published during his lifetime. Although not credited, Neal's widow Evelyn Neal assisted in the production of the book by selecting material that was included.

The Larry Neal Papers date from 1961 to 1985 and document Neal's role as writer/editor and seminal figure in the Black Arts Movement. The papers consist principally of manuscripts and research materials for Neal's diverse forms of writings, including essays, scripts, screenplays, poems, stories, and anthologies. Published copies of some of his writings are included in the collection, as are writings by colleagues. Neal's professional papers include correspondence with colleagues and publishers. Materials post-dating his death in 1981 document the various memorials and a conference honoring his achievements.

The Larry Neal papers are arranged in six series:

The PERSONAL PAPERS series, 1966-1985 (.4 lin. ft.), is composed of biographical information including Neal's resumes, incoming letters, his marriage certificate, and photocopies of photographs of his family and colleagues (Schomburg Center's Photographs and Prints Division maintains a Larry Neal Photograph Collection). Most of this series deals with Neal's death in 1981, and includes letters of condolence, funeral (viewing) guest book, memorials, obituaries, literary criticism in the form of a memorial and a literary conference named in his honor, which was sponsored by the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities.

The PROFESSIONAL PAPERS series, 1966-1981 (1.6 lin. ft.), includes letters from significant correspondents such as Amiri Baraka, Gwendolyn Brooks, Eddie Ellis, Hoyt Fuller, Langston Hughes, Woodie King, Dudley Randall, Max Roach, Leopold Sedar Senghor, and Chiz Schultz. Topics discussed in the correspondence include Neal's plans for projects involving music, writing, filming, and the production of plays he wrote as well as the Journal of Black Poetry. Avatar Enterprises, Neal's production company is represented by the incorporation book and related letters.

As an instructor at various universities, the teaching materials, student papers, and administrative documents in the collection reflect this aspect of Neal's career. Correspondence with organizations in which he was involved include the Federal Theatre Project in the 1970's and 1980's. Addresses and datebooks complete the professional papers series.

The largest series in this collection is Neal's WRITINGS, 1970-1975, (8.2 lin. ft.) and is divided into the genres in which he wrote.

The series provides a limited view of Neal's role as Executive Director of this agency. The scope of the material includes, an incomplete set of minutes of Board of Directors' meetings, memoranda, transcript of an interview with Neal, several proposals such as those for a District of Columbia Solidarity Project, and a National Black Theatre, handouts from an employment and career workshop, annual and other reports, and printed material pertaining to programs sponsored by the commission.

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The series is divided into two subseries: Essays, Short Stories, Poems, 1966-1979 (1 lin. ft.) focus on African-American and African topics by such authors as Amiri Baraka, John Blassingame, Hoyt Fuller, and Robert F. Thompson. The second subseries, Scripts, 1972-1977 (.8 lin. ft.), consists of playscripts and screenplays authored by a variety of writers including Hoyt Fuller, Earnest L. Hudson, Henry Edward Krehbiel, Ishmael Reed, Howard Sackler, and Douglas Turner Ward.

Source of acquisition

Purchased from Evelyn L. Neal, 1986

Donated by Evelyn L. Neal, 1988-1990

Revision History

Finding aid updated by Lauren Stark. (2022 September 9)

Processing information

Processed by Janice Quinter; machine-readable finding aid created by Apex Data Services; revised by Terry Catapano.

Separated material

Transferred to the Art and Artifacts Division: art cards and small posters.

Transferred to the Jean Blackwell Hutson General Research and Reference Division: books and periodicals.

Transferred to the Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division: audio materials.

Transferred to the Photographs and Print Division: photographs and contact sheets.

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The Black Arts Movement’s Revolution in the South

A free south, the black arts movement and the politics of emancipation..

We claimed to be playwrights and poets; yet the political facts of life presented by the situation we first learned of in the South called for a life of useful (political or economic) engagement. How could we remain true to ourselves and our own concerns as artists and at the same time remain true to our developing recognition of political responsibility? 4

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Women of the Black Arts Movement

 The Black Arts Movement was deemed controversial for many reasons; one of them being that much of the content was considered sexist. Many of the major works of BAM were solely focused on Black masculinity, and this often threatened to drown out the voices and messages of Black women artists of the movement. Though the Black Arts Movement was largely male dominated, many female artists gained recognition for their works, and several of those women enjoyed lasting fame as their works began to be celebrated by the mainstream. Their messages of Black womanhood, motherhood, African womanism, and feminism should not be forgotten amongst the contrary messages of some BAM leaders. 

Notable Women Poets of BAM

• Nikki Giovanni is probably the most famous woman poet of the Black Arts Movement. Her early poetry provides has strong, militant presence, leading one writer to dub her the "Poet of the Black Revolution." Giovanni garnered fame from the release of her first three collections of poetry: Black Feeling, Black Talk (1967), Black Judgement (1968), and Re: Creation (1970). 
• Sonia Sanchez's contributions to the Black Arts Movement lie in the publication of her first and second volumes of poetry. The first, Home Coming (1968), describes both the struggle of defining black identity in the United States as well as the many causes for celebration Sanchez sees in black culture. The second, We BaddDDD People (1970), uses experimental poetic forms and focuses on the everyday lives of Black women and men.
• Audre Lorde published three poetry collections during the Black Arts Movement. Her first, The First Cities (1968), though not politically driven was an introspective reflection of Lorde's identity as a Black person. The second and third books, Cable to Rage (1970) and From a Land Where Other People Live (1973), both more political than her first book, explore injustices and oppression that Lorde faced in her life as a Black woman, a lesbian, a mother, and a poet. 
• Jayne Cortez's poetry collections Pissstained Stairs and the Monkey Man's Wares (1969) and Festivals and Funerals (1971) were both released during the Black Arts Movements and both incorporated a lyrical style of writing for which Cortez is known. Her other BAM work, Celebrations and Solitudes (1974), was released as a spoken word album, on which Cortez read her poems over music by bassist Richard Davis. 
• Chicago-based poet Gwendolyn Brooks, active in the poetry community since the 1940s, makes a huge contribution to the Black Arts Movement with her collection, In the Mecca (1968), a volume that discusses the realities, both beautiful and ugly, of living in urban cities like Chicago. 
• June Jordan's first published book, Who Look at Me (1969), was a collection of poetry for children that used poetry to describe paintings by Black Americans. Jordan wouldn't released her first full-length book of poetry until 1974 when she published New Days: Poems of Exile and Return.
• Carolyn Rodgers's poetry style used free verse street slang and often employed profanity to construct her messages about identity, religion, womanism, and revolution. Though her use of profanity was criticized as being unladylike by some male BAM leaders, her poetry collections Paper Soul (1968) and Songs of a Blackbird (1969) led her to be considered one of the most influential voices of the Black Arts Movement. 
• Mari Evans was known for her precise use of language and her dispassionate tone that allows her words to carry their own power. Mari Evans's first volume of poetry, Where Is All the Music? (1968), was a very personal collection that included many personal narratives of Evans herself. Her second collection, I Am a Black Woman (1970), featured many of the poems from Where Is All the Music but incorporated a more pronounced message of Black liberation.
• Though most renowned for her autobiographies, Maya Angelou also received acclaim for her 1971 volume of poetry Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'fore I Diiie. This volume is divided into two sections, the first being comprised of love poems and the second of poems about the experience of African Americans living in a white dominated society.
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• Last Updated: Jul 8, 2024 4:51 PM
• URL: https://libguides.wustl.edu/bam

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Essay: The Black Arts Movement (BAM)

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In a time where racial discrimination and profiling reigned supreme, the Black Arts Movement (BAM) was the only thing that stood out as different. The movement was a divergent form of activism for equal rights of the black people and other American minorities in a world dominated by the white man. It was at this time that the black people saw that using violence to gain equality from the white man only made their situation worse as seen by the outcomes of the Black Power Movement and the Black Panther.

The movement was founded sometime in the mid-1960s after the assassination of Malcolm X. The assassination of the celebrated figure caused some stir among the black community in which two doctrines were to be followed; the first being the Revolutionary Nationalists who still believed that force and willpower was the only way forward thus the Black Panther Movement and the Cultural Nationalist who chose the aesthetics such as literature, drama, and music as a form of political activism.

It is from the cultural nationalism that the BAM was born. With its slogan, Black Power, it challenged the African American community to rise up from oppression and suppression with a new generation of leadership that called for self-determination and self-respect in the social experimentation of black autonomy. These philosophies were mostly derived from the Martin Luther King’s teachings of peaceful demonstration while the difference is that it was not much of an active demonstration rather, a passive-aggressive form of liberation as it called for the use of the African American culture, something that the Black American community is famous for.

Among the reasons for the adoption of the BAM, the movement was to develop a nationally available magazine that could provide a platform for critiques and budding writers and poets while also providing publication for those that were accepted. This is mainly because all of the publishing houses usually rejected any books which related to the black arts regardless of the race of the writer which the bigger heads in the black arts saw both as a challenge and as an opportunity. The challenge came in gaining autonomy where they were in constant threats of shutting down by the government and the opportunity came in the form of challenging the younger generation to drop its violent ways and adopt a better solution to discrimination.

The movement mainly comprised of poets, artists, writers and dramatists who came together to use poems, songs and drama to empower their brethren. Among them were the poet and playwright Imamu Amiri Baraka who founded a publishing press for the movement and also wrote some of the culturally themed plays and print media among them being the Yugen.

The BAM imagined its political movements as a means of gaining liberation and political autonomy through mass media which they themselves developed. The efforts made by the movement saw to it that the black American community could have access to printed media which was their mode of passing their teaching to the greater community thus there was a need for them to have their own printing presses and also incorporate some of their plays into institutions which would eventually reach the masses.

The key figures in the movement realized that the struggle for equality of the black man could be gained in stages as was observed in the Chinese revolution. The first stage was national liberation, which mass media such as magazines and journals could be used to create awareness to every African American all over the country which would then be followed by the second stage, social transformation which called for every person to leave the violent means of fighting for freedom as it only called for the worst.

This is because the dominant white government would use this as an excuse to suppress and kill all possible hope for liberation of the black Americans as evidenced by the infiltration of the Black Power Movement by the FBI and the assassinations of both Dr Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X who both succumbed to their untimely deaths as a result of trying to make America a place where the black man could lively freely without discrimination.

It is safe to say that the movement borrowed most of its empowerment from the African continent which was also struggling for freedom from colonialism at that time. Most people would argue that internal colonialism of the black minority was the main concept in the national liberation, it was through Baraka's rise in the ranks that the politics of the movement started to make a shape. He saw to it that the black power politics combined both liberation and socialism as adopted from the African’s struggle for independence through political parties.

Even though it was clear that autonomy of the black American community was the only way forward, acquiring it was to be a struggle both within the community and outside the community.  Within the community, there was a gap among the people of which those that supported the Revolutionary Nationalist movement who saw that using white man’s education to gain equality was a joke and could not be achieved thus they still sought to violence. It is this reasoning that made the outside challenges have more ground; the white-dominated government only viewed all the black Americans as thugs thus the police were encouraged to use brutal force on every black person which would lead to many unlawful imprisonment and deaths of some of the leaders.

However, the BAM still had its hopes in music and drama. Its official inauguration came after the opening of the Black Arts Repertory Theatre in Harlem with its goal being to use theatrical arts and poetry to call for the unity of the black community through culture; something that they all shared and that they could all relate to.

This soon spread across the country from New York to Detroit and Chicago. This spread also paved way for the printing press to create the opportunity for the rising black writers and poets such as the Third World Press in Chicago and the Lotus Press and Broadside Press in Detroit that republished the older works that contained black poetry. The that the printing presses started empowered the young generation and experimental poets such as Maya Angelou who was also an activist in black woman empowerment.

The first literary publication was the Black Dialogue, printed in California in 1964 and edited by Malcolm X among others. It included a political theme with poetry being placed in the Reject Note section which was an ironic statement considering it was not a politically inclined publication rather, a culturally themed one. The story behind this irony was to engage and challenge its readers in both a politically and culturally themed outlet.

The Black Arts creative literature had Chicago based Negro Digest. It was published by Johnson which was also famous for Jet and Ebony which were all culturally themed. The editor in chief was Hoyt Fuller who was also an activist in the BAM and through his links, the Negro Digest found its ways on newsstands nationwide. It eventually changed its name to Black Word which together with the Slogan Black Power, it seemed to hold more grounds that the original Negro which the African Americans viewed as a racial term.

The Black World was eventually turned into a publication of a wide variety of literature including poetry, fiction, and drama. Included was also the perspectives column that entailed the upcoming cultural events and conferences that invited everyone. This was a strategy in the form of social awareness. Through this, the activists were invited to perform their methods of liberation which would soon be adopted thereby seeing to the fall of the Revolutionary Nationalists. Violence among the black community started to show a significant reduction in more and more youth sought to peaceful means of self-awareness and expression as a means to fight of the oppression. Higher institutions such as universities also started to incorporate the fo rms of theatrical arts in the curriculum eventually paving way for more novices who would use it as a political means to abolish discrimination.

Aside from this, they saw to it that music was also incorporated into the fight for autonomy and through collaborations with jazz artists such as John Coltrane and Archie Shepp, music became a tool for the struggle as it was infamous for being more politically appealing and generally to the white people than soul and rhythm blues which were more inclined to the blacks.

In the field of theatrical arts, profound innovation was a demand which had to have the appeal of the black culture but soon, as it started to gain more popularity, there soon emerged a need to develop more works that could also empower the white audience through telling the story how the African Americans saw it. As such, these performances would feature raw aspects such as violence which in fact alienated both the black and white culture.

At its height in the Mid-1970s, their efforts started to bear fruits. All the key figures with Baraka included started to gain cultural recognition and eventually became an economic success which even though was not part of the plan for liberation, still gained an audience of the white supremacist who saw to it that the only way forward was to unite. The fame that they gained threatened the autonomy of the African American Population which was something that they could not deal with; a country within a country was a dangerous risk and because the white population began to appreciate them, violence from the government would be met with even more backlashes and revolutions.

The political protest of the BAM differs from its predecessors in a variety of ways chief among them is the incorporation of all form of art in the struggle for liberation. This includes vernacular tradition such as spirituals, gospels and the blues which called for the empowerment of the black community and theatricals such as drama and plays.

The third edition of the Norton Anthology of African American Literature provides a timeline for the works that the BAM inspired among them being the Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs which is a narrative of the life of a girl born into slavery and struggle to flee captivity to the eventual freedom after the emancipation proclamation.

Even after the American civil war, black men were still captive in America and had no right even to the air he breathes. Several activists rose up and all of them were silenced, the black man was still looked down upon and racism became even rampant with several anti-black organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan who actively hunted and killed any black person because they believed that it was their God-given right to do so. It is these struggles, contained in the form of narratives that the Anthology provides with every timeline included. In general, the book is a library of the works prior and after the efforts raised by the BAM.

In conclusion, the editions of the Norton Anthology of African American Literature all include detailed works of the artists as seen in that generation. It is through the BAM and the struggle for liberation that the books have included and even though the BAM is no longer in existence, its efforts have left a make in the world. The Hip Hop culture is the new version of cultural expression of African Americans. The book provides guidance to all the means of struggle to equality.

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Intro Essay: The Civil Rights Movement

To what extent did founding principles of liberty, equality, and justice become a reality for african americans during the civil rights movement.

• I can explain the importance of local and federal actions in the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s.
• I can compare the goals and methods of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLS), the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Malcolm X and Black Nationalism, and Black Power.
• I can explain challenges African Americans continued to face despite victories for equality and justice during the civil rights movement.

Essential Vocabulary

Continuing the Heroic Struggle for Equality: The Civil Rights Movement

The struggle to make the promises of the Declaration of Independence a reality for Black Americans reached a climax after World War II. The activists of the civil rights movement directly confronted segregation and demanded equal civil rights at the local level with physical and moral courage and perseverance. They simultaneously pursued a national strategy of systematically filing lawsuits in federal courts, lobbying Congress, and pressuring presidents to change the laws. The civil rights movement encountered significant resistance, however, and suffered violence in the quest for equality.

During the middle of the twentieth century, several Black writers grappled with the central contradictions between the nation’s ideals and its realities, and the place of Black Americans in their country. Richard Wright explored a raw confrontation with racism in Native Son (1940), while Ralph Ellison led readers through a search for identity beyond a racialized category in his novel Invisible Man (1952), as part of the Black quest for identity. The novel also offered hope in the power of the sacred principles of the Founding documents. Playwright Lorraine Hansberry wrote A Raisin in the Sun , first performed in 1959, about the dreams deferred for Black Americans and questions about assimilation. Novelist and essayist James Baldwin described Blacks’ estrangement from U.S. society and themselves while caught in a racial nightmare of injustice in The Fire Next Time (1963) and other works.

World War II wrought great changes in U.S. society. Black soldiers fought for a “double V for victory,” hoping to triumph over fascism abroad and racism at home. Many received a hostile reception, such as Medgar Evers who was blocked from voting at gunpoint by five armed whites. Blacks continued the Great Migration to southern and northern cities for wartime industrial work. After the war, in 1947, Jackie Robinson endured racial taunts on the field and segregation off it as he broke the color barrier in professional baseball and began a Hall of Fame career. The following year, President Harry Truman issued executive orders desegregating the military and banning discrimination in the civil service. Meanwhile, Thurgood Marshall and his legal team at the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) meticulously prepared legal challenges to discrimination, continuing a decades-long effort.

The NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund brought lawsuits against segregated schools in different states that were consolidated into Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka , 1954. The Supreme Court unanimously decided that “separate but equal” was “inherently unequal.” Brown II followed a year after, as the court ordered that the integration of schools should be pursued “with all deliberate speed.” Throughout the South, angry whites responded with a campaign of “massive resistance” and refused to comply with the order, while many parents sent their children to all-white private schools. Middle-class whites who opposed integration joined local chapters of citizens’ councils and used propaganda, economic pressure, and even violence to achieve their ends.

A wave of violence and intimidation followed. In 1955, teenager Emmett Till was visiting relatives in Mississippi when he was lynched after being falsely accused of whistling at a white woman. Though an all-white jury quickly acquitted the two men accused of killing him, Till’s murder was reported nationally and raised awareness of the injustices taking place in Mississippi.

In Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks (who was a secretary of the Montgomery NAACP) was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger on a segregated bus. Her willingness to confront segregation led to a direct-action movement for equality. The local Women’s Political Council organized the city’s Black residents into a boycott of the bus system, which was then led by the Montgomery Improvement Association. Black churches and ministers, including Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Rev. Ralph Abernathy, provided a source of strength. Despite arrests, armed mobs, and church bombings, the boycott lasted until a federal court desegregated the city buses. In the wake of the boycott, the leading ministers formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) , which became a key civil rights organization.

Rosa Parks is shown here in 1955 with Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the background. The Montgomery bus boycott was an important victory in the civil rights movement.

In 1957, nine Black families decided to send their children to Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Governor Orval Faubus used the National Guard to prevent their entry, and one student, Elizabeth Eckford, faced an angry crowd of whites alone and barely escaped. President Eisenhower was compelled to respond and sent in 1,200 paratroops from the 101st Airborne to protect the Black students. They continued to be harassed, but most finished the school year and integrated the school.

That year, Congress passed a Civil Rights Act that created a civil rights division in the Justice Department and provided minimal protections for the right to vote. The bill had been watered down because of an expected filibuster by southern senators, who had recently signed the Southern Manifesto, a document pledging their resistance to Supreme Court decisions such as Brown .

In 1960, four Black college students were refused lunch service at a local Woolworth’s in Greensboro, North Carolina, and they spontaneously staged a “sit-in” the following day. Their resistance to the indignities of segregation was copied by thousands of others of young Blacks across the South, launching another wave of direct, nonviolent confrontation with segregation. Ella Baker invited several participants to a Raleigh conference where they formed the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and issued a Statement of Purpose. The group represented a more youthful and daring effort that later broke with King and his strategy of nonviolence.

In contrast, Malcolm X became a leading spokesperson for the Nation of Islam (NOI) who represented Black separatism as an alternative to integration, which he deemed an unworthy goal. He advocated revolutionary violence as a means of Black self-defense and rejected nonviolence. He later changed his views, breaking with the NOI and embracing a Black nationalism that had more common ground with King’s nonviolent views. Malcolm X had reached out to establish ties with other Black activists before being gunned down by assassins who were members of the NOI later in 1965.

In 1961, members of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) rode segregated buses in order to integrate interstate travel. These Black and white Freedom Riders traveled into the Deep South, where mobs beat them with bats and pipes in bus stations and firebombed their buses. A cautious Kennedy administration reluctantly intervened to protect the Freedom Riders with federal marshals, who were also victimized by violent white mobs.

Malcolm X was a charismatic speaker and gifted organizer. He argued that Black pride, identity, and independence were more important than integration with whites.

King was moved to act. He confronted segregation with the hope of exposing injustice and brutality against nonviolent protestors and arousing the conscience of the nation to achieve a just rule of law. The first planned civil rights campaign was initiated by SNCC and taken over mid-campaign by King and SCLC. It failed because Albany, Georgia’s Police Chief Laurie Pritchett studied King’s tactics and responded to the demonstrations with restraint. In 1963, King shifted the movement to Birmingham, Alabama, where Public Safety Commissioner Bull Connor unleashed his officers to attack civil rights protestors with fire hoses and police dogs. Authorities arrested thousands, including many young people who joined the marches. King wrote “Letter from Birmingham Jail” after his own arrest and provided the moral justification for the movement to break unjust laws. National and international audiences were shocked by the violent images shown in newspapers and on the television news. President Kennedy addressed the nation and asked, “whether all Americans are to be afforded equal rights and equal opportunities . . . [If a Black person]cannot enjoy the full and free life which all of us want, then who among us would be content to have the color of his skin changed and stand in his place?” The president then submitted a civil rights bill to Congress.

In late August 1963, more than 250,000 people joined the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in solidarity for equal rights. From the Lincoln Memorial steps, King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. He stated, “I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up, live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’”

After Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, President Lyndon Johnson pushed his agenda through Congress. In the early summer of 1964, a 3-month filibuster by southern senators was finally defeated, and both houses passed the historical civil rights bill. President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law, banning segregation in public accommodations.

Activists in the civil rights movement then focused on campaigns for the right to vote. During the summer of 1964, several civil rights organizations combined their efforts during the “ Freedom Summer ” to register Blacks to vote with the help of young white college students. They endured terror and intimidation as dozens of churches and homes were burned and workers were killed, including an incident in which Black advocate James Chaney and two white students, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner, were murdered in Mississippi.

In August 1963, peaceful protesters gathered in front of the Lincoln Memorial to draw attention to the inequalities and indignities African Americans suffered 100 years after emancipation. Leaders of the march are shown in the image on the bottom, with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the center.

That summer, Fannie Lou Hamer helped organize the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP) as civil rights delegates to replace the rival white delegation opposed to civil rights at the Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City. Hamer was a veteran of attempts to register other Blacks to vote and endured severe beatings for her efforts. A proposed compromise of giving two seats to the MFDP satisfied neither those delegates nor the white delegation, which walked out. Cracks were opening up in the Democratic electoral coalition over civil rights, especially in the South.

Fannie Lou Hamer testified about the violence she and others endured when trying to register to vote at the 1964 Democratic National Convention. Her televised testimony exposed the realities of continued violence against Blacks trying to exercise their constitutional rights.

In early 1965, the SCLC and SNCC joined forces to register voters in Selma and draw attention to the fight for Black suffrage. On March 7, marchers planned to walk peacefully from Selma to the state capital of Montgomery. However, mounted state troopers and police blocked the Edmund Pettus Bridge and then rampaged through the marchers, indiscriminately beating them. SNCC leader John Lewis suffered a fractured skull, and 5 women were clubbed unconscious. Seventy people were hospitalized for injuries during “Bloody Sunday.” The scenes again shocked television viewers and newspaper readers.

The images of state troopers, local police, and local people brutally attacking peaceful protestors on “Bloody Sunday” shocked people across the country and world. Two weeks later, protestors of all ages and races continued the protest. By the time they reached the state capitol in Montgomery, Alabama, their ranks had swelled to about 25,000 people.

Two days later, King led a symbolic march to the bridge but then turned around. Many younger and more militant activists were alienated and felt that King had sold out to white authorities. The tension revealed the widening division between older civil rights advocates and those younger, more radical supporters who were frustrated at the slow pace of change and the routine violence inflicted upon peaceful protesters. Nevertheless, starting on March 21, with the help of a federal judge who refused Governor George Wallace’s request to ban the march, Blacks triumphantly walked to Montgomery. On August 6, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act protecting the rights to register and vote after a Senate filibuster ended and the bill passed Congress.

The Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act did not alter the fact that most Black Americans still suffered racism, were denied equal economic opportunities, and lived in segregated neighborhoods. While King and other leaders did seek to raise their issues among northerners, frustrations often boiled over into urban riots during the mid-1960s. Police brutality and other racial incidents often triggered days of violence in which hundreds were injured or killed. There were mass arrests and widespread property damage from arson and looting in Los Angeles, Detroit, Newark, Cleveland, Chicago, and dozens of other cities. A presidential National Advisory Commission of Civil Disorders issued the Kerner Report, which analyzed the causes of urban unrest, noting the impact of racism on the inequalities and injustices suffered by Black Americans.

Frustration among young Black Americans led to the rise of a more militant strain of advocacy. In 1966, activist James Meredith was on a solo march in Mississippi to raise awareness about Black voter registration when he was shot and wounded. Though Meredith recovered, this event typified the violence that led some young Black Americans to espouse a more military strain of advocacy. On June 16, SNCC leader Stokely Carmichael and members of the Black Panther Party continued Meredith’s march while he recovered from his wounds, chanting, “We want Black Power .” Black Power leaders and members of the Black Panther Party offered a different vision for equality and justice. They advocated self-reliance and self-empowerment, a celebration of Black culture, and armed self-defense. They used aggressive rhetoric to project a more radical strategy for racial progress, including sympathy for revolutionary socialism and rejection of capitalism. While its legacy is debated, the Black Power movement raised many important questions about the place of Black Americans in the United States, beyond the civil rights movement.

After World War II, Black Americans confronted the iniquities and indignities of segregation to end almost a century of Jim Crow. Undeterred, they turned the public’s eyes to the injustice they faced and called on the country to live up to the promises of the Declaration of Independence and Constitution, and to continue the fight against inequality and discrimination.

Reading Comprehension Questions

• What factors helped to create the modern civil rights movement?
• How was the quest for civil rights a combination of federal and local actions?
• What were the goals and methods of different activists and groups of the civil rights movement? Complete the table below to reference throughout your analysis of the primary source documents.

Kazimir Malevich “Black Square” – Analyzing the Famous Square Painting

A black square bearing the ideals of a new reality, it is something beyond the world of representational reality and directly feeds into the world of feeling. This article will explore one of the most revolutionary Malevich paintings, the Black Square (1915).  

Table of Contents

• 1 Artist Abstract: Who Was Kazimir Malevich?
• 2.1.1 A Cubo-Futurist Opera and “Zero-Ten” Exhibition
• 2.1.2 Zero: More Than an “Empty Square”
• 3.1 Subject Matter
• 3.2 Color and Texture 
• 3.3 Form and Shape
• 4 Interesting Facts About the Black Square Painting
• 5.1 Who Painted the Famous Square Painting?
• 5.2 Where Is the Kazimir Malevich Black Square (1915) Now?
• 5.3 What Art Style Is the Black Square (1915) Painting?

Artist Abstract: Who Was Kazimir Malevich?

Kazimir Severinovich Malevich was born in Kyiv in Ukraine on February 23, 1879, and died from cancer on May 15, 1935. He was a famous Russian avant-garde artist who started the Suprematism art style and theory, pioneering non-objective Abstract art in Russia as well as the world. He started art from a young age and studied at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture. He was influenced by various styles, from Impressionism , Cubism, and Futurism.

Black Square (1915) by Kazimir Malevich in Context

Kazimir Malevich was one of the fathers of non-objective, otherwise non-representational, Abstract art . From his writings about Suprematism, he is often quoted as writing, “When, in the year 1913, in my desperate attempt to free art from the ballast of objectivity, I took refuge in the square form”.

Below, we will provide further contextual background around Malevich and his art style called Suprematism, which was intricately tied to the formulation of his famous square painting and how he took “refuge” in this style.

Additionally, we will explore how this Black Square painting first originated. We will then discuss a formal analysis about the Black Square painting itself, taking a closer look at the stylistic elements and the subject matter, the latter we could say is deduced from the title itself, but as we should know, nothing in art history should be overlooked even if it appears simple, and in this case, a geometric square.

Contextual Analysis: A Brief Socio-Historical Overview

The Black Square was one of the first Malevich paintings that introduced an entirely new world enriched with the expression of raw feeling. This is what the Russian artist sought to create and show the world. It was removing the heavyweights, so to say, from representational, or objective, art and becoming lighter, letting feeling fly free through the non-objective.

A Cubo-Futurist Opera and “Zero-Ten” Exhibition

Kazimir Malevich first introduced his famous square painting as a design on a stage curtain for the opera called Victory Over the Sun (1913); the genre was Russian Futurism. It was in 1915 when Malevich first displayed his Black Square painting in The Last Futurist Exhibition of Paintings 0,10 exhibition in Petrograd (now Saint Petersburg), Russia.

The Last Futurist Exhibition of Paintings 0,10 showcased 39 Malevich paintings, which also introduced his new art philosophy, Suprematism, and the conclusion of what was Cubo-Futurism. There were apparently 14 artists who also exhibited at the “Zero-Ten” exhibition.

Zero: More Than an “Empty Square”

The word “zero” bears considerable weight when it comes to Suprematism and Malevich’s Black Square painting; it is the cornerstone idea infusing life into the spaces of geometric non-objectivity. But what does it all mean?

In 1915, Malevich wrote From Cubism and Futurism to Suprematism : The New Painterly Realism , which was at the “Zero-Ten” exhibition. Malevich explained in it that he transformed himself in the “zero of form” and “fished” himself out of the “slough of academic art”.

Furthermore, he explained how he destroyed the “ring of the horizon and escaped the circle of objects”. 

While he wrote his musings and theories in more detail than the above, the essence of Suprematism is conveyed. We can ascertain more about Suprematism from Malevich’s essay titled Suprematism from his treatise The Non-Objective World (1927).

From the above, he explained that the Suprematist square introduced the “world of feeling” and he compared it to primitive art , or “marks”, from the Aboriginal man. Their symbols stood for “not an ornament but a feeling of rhythm”. Furthermore, Malevich explained, “Suprematism did not bring into being a new world of feeling but rather, an altogether new and direct form of representation of the world of feeling”.

The public and critics were undoubtedly not used to these new depictions in art, and Malevich wrote that they proclaimed they have lost everything they love and are in a desert when they saw the black square.

Malevich described his painting as no “empty square”, but instead it was the “feeling of nonobjectivity”. These descriptions provide significant detail about the essence of the non-objective world that Malevich felt such a connection to. He explained that this desert was full of the “spirit of nonobjective sensation”.

Formal Analysis: A Brief Compositional Overview

Below, we look at the Black Square painting in more detail in terms of the subject matter, the shape, medium, color, and other stylistic elements. 

Subject Matter

If we look at the Black Square , as the title denotes, it is simply a square painted in the color black on a white background, which is also in a square shape. Some art sources have stated that when looking at the famous square painting there is no “wrong” way to look at it, nor a “right” way. This is important to keep in mind when we look at the Black Square painting; it is open to interpretation.

However, it is equally important to remember that Malevich sought to transcend the barriers of representation and it is possibly not referring to anything related to reality.

Therefore, the subject matter becomes the color, the shape, the brushstrokes, and the texture created from it, as well as the medium of paint used. When we look at all these elements that make the painting, we see what the painting is meant to be; there is no allusion to another form or subject matter created with the help of these formal elements. Malevich expounded on this in his Suprematism (1927) text, writing that the “square equals feeling, the white field equals the void beyond this feeling”.

Color and Texture 

Color and texture were important painterly parts to Malevich, in fact, to the Suprematist ideologies. In the text From Cubism and Futurism to Suprematism: The New Painterly Realism (1915) Malevich wrote about it and explained that it (color and texture) is the “of the greatest value in painterly creation”.

These are the “essence of painting”, however, he continued to state that this essence has always been “killed” by the subject of a painting.

As we mentioned above, the subject matter becomes intricately tied to the color and texture, and vice versa. An important point to note is that Black Square’s painterly surface has become considerably cracked over the years, as have some of his other paintings. This is referred to as craquelure. Sources state that this is connected to Malevich’s methods of applying paint, which was to paint over semi-wet paint.  

If we zoom in, we will notice texture created by the brushstrokes, on the white and black surfaces. Furthermore, art sources state that Malevich sometimes utilized two different pigments of white, namely lead white and zinc white, to create the idea of texture. Although we do not know if he utilized these same pigments for his Black Square , it is easy to understand that he may have.

We will also notice there are other colors shown through the cracks of the paint.

This points to the fact that the Black Square was, at first, not a black square. X-Ray studies of the Black Square indicated that Malevich reportedly painted two other compositions on the same canvas, which were described as “Cubo-Futurist” and “Proto-Suprematist” in style.

According to another story, Malevich needed a painting to display for the “Zero-Ten” exhibition, so he painted over an image he already started. Although this story might deem to be true, it is true that there are images under the Black Square painting, however, maybe Malevich’s true reasons for his pivot in the subject matter will remain unclear to an extent. 

Form and Shape

It was in the form that Malevich saw true art and he even compared how a hexagon or pentagon would have made better sculptures than Venus de Milo (c. 150 to 125 BC) or the David (1501 to 1504). From the same text mentioned above, Malevich wrote that art needs to be created with the intention to repeat the “real forms of nature”. We certainly see this in the form and shape of the Kazimir Malevich Black Square as well as so many of his other Suprematist artworks.

If we look at the form of the square, art sources have stated that it is not a true square, in other words, the sides are not paralleled like a square would be.

Interesting Facts About the Black Square Painting

X-Ray studies also revealed that Malevich wrote a note under the Black Square’s paint. It read, “A battle of negroes…”, the rest of the inscription was reportedly illegible, but some artistic resources have stated it possibly read, “Battle of negroes in a dark cave” or “Negroes battling in a cave”.

This has been traced back to Alphonse Allais, who was a French writer. The artwork was titled, in French, Combat de nègres dans une cave, pendant la nuit , which means “Battle of negroes in a cave at night” (1897). This was reportedly made as a joke and inspired by the original version made by Paul Bilhaud in 1882, titled in French as Combat de négres dans un tunnel .

Could Malevich have been inspired by Allais’s version of the black square and simply created his own black square, only applying his Suprematism principles to give it a different meaning? Some also question whether Allais’s version of a black square was the first abstract piece or merely just made as a joke without any intention to create abstract art.

What Malevich meant when he wrote “venture to spit” was to passionately motivate artists to leave behind the outdated, referring to Futurism, and embrace the new, which was Suprematism. The Kazimir Malevich “Black Square” became an emblem, or symbol, of Suprematism. It was a black flag, so to say, welcoming in the future, and leaving behind Futurism.

Take a look at our  Black Square  painting webstory here!

Frequently Asked Questions

Who painted the famous square painting.

Kazimir Malevich painted the famous Black Square in 1915. He was born in Ukraine and became known as one of the forefathers of abstract art, specifically geometric abstract art or non-objective art.

Where Is the Kazimir Malevich Black Square (1915) Now?

The Black Square (1915) painting is housed at the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, Russia. The art gallery has an extensive collection of Russian art dating back to the 12 th century, including Modern art pieces.

What Art Style Is the Black Square (1915) Painting?

Kazimir Malevich painted the Black Square (1915) as a leading example that introduced his art theory and style called Suprematism. It was a form of non-representational art that went back to the so-called world of feeling.

Alicia du Plessis is a multidisciplinary writer. She completed her Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in Art History and Classical Civilization, as well as two Honors, namely, in Art History and Education and Development, at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. For her main Honors project in Art History, she explored perceptions of the San Bushmen’s identity and the concept of the “Other”. She has also looked at the use of photography in art and how it has been used to portray people’s lives.

Alicia’s other areas of interest in Art History include the process of writing about Art History and how to analyze paintings. Some of her favorite art movements include Impressionism and German Expressionism. She is yet to complete her Masters in Art History (she would like to do this abroad in Europe) having given it some time to first develop more professional experience with the interest to one day lecture it too.

Alicia has been working for artincontext.com since 2021 as an author and art history expert. She has specialized in painting analysis and is covering most of our painting analysis.

Learn more about Alicia du Plessis and the Art in Context Team .

Cite this Article

Alicia, du Plessis, “Kazimir Malevich “Black Square” – Analyzing the Famous Square Painting.” Art in Context. February 25, 2022. URL: https://artincontext.org/kazimir-malevich-black-square/

du Plessis, A. (2022, 25 February). Kazimir Malevich “Black Square” – Analyzing the Famous Square Painting. Art in Context. https://artincontext.org/kazimir-malevich-black-square/

du Plessis, Alicia. “Kazimir Malevich “Black Square” – Analyzing the Famous Square Painting.” Art in Context , February 25, 2022. https://artincontext.org/kazimir-malevich-black-square/ .

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The Most Famous Artists and Artworks

Discover the most famous artists, paintings, sculptors…in all of history! 

MOST FAMOUS ARTISTS AND ARTWORKS

Discover the most famous artists, paintings, sculptors!

Pioneers of Paint

Unveiling the Mystery: Kazimir Malevich’s Black Square and its Enduring Influence

Kazimir Malevich’s “Black Square,” first unveiled in 1915, marked a turning point in the world of visual arts. Part of the Suprematism movement founded by Malevich himself, the painting, represented by a simple yet potent black square, stood as a symbol of modern art. Created in four versions, the last believed to be in the late 1920s or early 1930s, “Black Square” was initially showcased in The Last Futurist Exhibition 0,10. Widely recognized under various names like “Black Square” or “Malevich’s Black Square,” it was a radical departure from traditional artistic norms.

“Black Square” was emblematic of Suprematism, an art movement that emphasized geometric forms and pure abstraction. The intention behind this movement was to transcend representation and concentrate on the spiritual and emotional essence of art. “Black Square,” radically non-representational, featured a dominating slab of black paint on canvas, pioneering a new path in art and challenging conventional artistic representations.

More than just an artistic masterpiece, “Black Square” emerged as a motif and logo for Malevich, its impact extending beyond his life. During his funeral, Malevich’s coffin bore a black square, and mourners carried flags adorned with the iconic symbol. Despite being hidden from the public during Stalin’s reign and not exhibited again until the 1980s, “Black Square” left an indelible mark on the artistic landscape, continuing to inspire and influence artists and designers to this day. This iconic painting represents a bold leap into modern art, challenging the boundaries of traditional artistic conventions and creating a lasting legacy of change and innovation.

The Origins of the Black Square

Picture this: you’re standing in front of a painting, and it’s simply a black square on a white background. That’s it. No complicated figures, no grand landscapes, just a black square. Would you call it art? Well, Russian artist Kazimir Malevich certainly did, and he called it the “Black Square.”

So, how did the “Black Square” come into being? Imagine a time when the world was in chaos, with World War I and the Russian Revolution shaking the very foundations of society. Artists were seeking ways to express this upheaval, and Malevich was no exception. Inspired by the shifting world order, he sought to create a new kind of art, one that transcended the traditional representation of reality. Enter the “Black Square,” a stark, simple shape that symbolized the dawn of a new era in art.

Fast forward to 1915, at The Last Futurist Exhibition 0,10 . Picture a buzz of anticipation in the air as Malevich unveiled his groundbreaking piece to the world. Positioned high up in a corner, in a place usually reserved for religious icons in Russian homes, the “Black Square” boldly proclaimed itself as the “zero point of painting.” For those who witnessed its unveiling, it wasn’t just an art exhibition; it was a statement that art, as they knew it, was about to change.

But wait, there’s more. The “Black Square” wasn’t a one-hit-wonder. Malevich went on to create four different versions of this painting. Like a musician refining a composition, each version saw Malevich experimenting with different materials and techniques. From oil on linen to oil on canvas, from a small canvas size to a larger one, the “Black Square” was more than just a painting—it was an evolving expression of Malevich’s artistic vision.

So next time you come across a seemingly simple piece of art like the “Black Square,” remember that it’s not just about what you see on the surface. Dive a little deeper, and you might just uncover a story of a revolutionary artist challenging conventions and changing the face of art forever.

Black Squares Before Malevich: A Journey Through Art’s Evolution

You might think, “Was Malevich the first to think of a black square?” Well, let’s travel back a bit and dive into some intriguing tidbits!

The Alluring Mystery of Black Squares in Art

In 1913, a notable year in the realm of art, a comic by French writer Alphonse Allais titled “Battle of Negroes in a Dark Cellar at Night” (or “Combat de nègres pendant la nuit” in French) was making rounds. This was an all-black image. Was Allais mocking the idea of a black square or predicting the rise of non-objective art? It’s like when you hear of someone inventing something only to discover someone else had a similar idea ages ago. Kind of like when you find out there were smartphones before the iPhone, just not as popular.

Now, here’s a fun table comparing these two pieces:

Remember, Allais’s approach leaned towards satire, whereas Malevich painted his “Black Square” as an earnest break from the norm, ushering in a new era for Russian art.

The Tale Behind Malevich’s Black Square

Now, painting by Kazimir Malevich, the Black Square, wasn’t just a spur-of-the-moment creation. It was a result of many influences and his innovative spirit.

Imagine a classroom in the year 1913. Mikhail Matyushin , a friend of Malevich and a known name in Russian avant-garde circles, was sharing details of the opera “Victory over the Sun.” The opera, with its abstract approach, was a precursor to Malevich’s non-objective style. The stage curtain? A black square. An important note, it was here that Malevich made his earliest versions of the “Black Square.”

In Malevich’s own words, he sought refuge in the simple “form of the square” as the basis of his art, reflecting a deeper spiritual journey.

Did you know? The phrase “this black square” was not just a description by viewers but an inscription on the painting by Malevich himself. He saw it as the “zero point of painting.” An analogy? It’s like the foundation of a skyscraper. Everything that follows – the impressive height, the stunning architecture – all of it rests on that foundational block. For Malevich, the black square was that foundation in the world of art.

Connecting the Dots

Now, let’s get a bit playful. Imagine two friends – let’s call them Alex and Misha – visiting the Museum of Modern Art in New York. They come across various paintings, discussing them animatedly.

Alex : Look at this! It says here that before Malevich’s Black Square, Alphonse Allais, a French writer, had something similar. And here, a work by a certain Severinovich Malevich, thought to have been painted in 1913. Is that the same Malevich? Misha : Yes, the full name’s Kazimir Severinovich Malevich. And you’re right, Malevich painted four different versions of the Black Square. Each time evolving, like a caterpillar into a butterfly. He always had the square to represent a shift, a break from the old, ushering in a new dawn.

Now, to wrap things up, let’s revisit our terms in a brief summary:

• 1913 : A significant year, marking French writer Alphonse Allais’ comic and the inception of Malevich’s idea.
• Futurism : A movement influencing Malevich’s art, leading to Suprematism.
• “Zero of Form” : Malevich’s concept, representing a pure start in art, devoid of past conventions.
• Mikhail : Refers to Mikhail Matyushin, associated with the opera “Victory over the Sun”, directly linking to Malevich’s Black Square.
• Black Square : Not just a painting, but a manifesto, an ideology, a new chapter in the annals of art.

Suprematism and Black Square

Imagine you’re an artist, and you’re fed up with painting bowls of fruit and landscapes. You yearn for something more, something that touches the essence of human emotion. You’re Kazimir Malevich, and you spearhead Suprematism, an art movement that’s about to shake things up.

So, what’s Suprematism all about? Picture an art movement that champions pure abstraction. Forget about mirroring the physical world. Suprematism is all about capturing the essence of pure feeling, using the most basic elements of art – shapes and colors. And who would be its poster child? You guessed it: the “Black Square.”

Take a step back and really look at the “Black Square.” What do you see? A black square (no points for guessing), set against a white background. Simple, yes, but it’s this simplicity that makes it powerful. The “Black Square” represents the core of Suprematism: a move away from traditional representation to pure abstraction.

When you see the painting, you’re not distracted by complex figures or landscapes. All you see is the contrast between black and white, between presence and absence. It’s a painting that doesn’t represent anything in the physical world. Instead, it takes you on a journey beyond the physical, to a place where you’re free to experience pure, raw emotion.

This is what makes the “Black Square” so radical. In an art world filled with intricate details and complicated compositions, Malevich brought us back to the basics. He dared to say, “Hey, you don’t need all that fluff. Art can be simple and still touch your soul.” So, the next time you look at a piece of abstract art, take a moment to feel rather than to analyze. You just might experience the Suprematist philosophy in action.

Beyond the Canvas: Black Square’s Significance

Have you ever come across a symbol that resonated with you so much you started using it everywhere? Maybe it’s a heart doodled in the margins of your notebook, or a lucky charm you carry in your pocket. For Kazimir Malevich , it was the “Black Square.” Yes, that same black square we’ve been talking about. It was more than just a painting; it became a part of his identity.

Look at the “Black Square” again, but this time, think of it as a symbol, a motif that followed Malevich throughout his life. Every time he signed his work, he added a little black square. Every time he created a piece of art, the black square was there, reminding him of his artistic journey. It became his logo, his trademark, the sign of a revolutionary artist who dared to break the rules and redefine art.

Now, let’s take a trip to a somber scene – Malevich’s funeral. As mourners gather to bid their final farewell, what’s that on his coffin? A black square. Flags adorned with black squares flutter in the breeze as the procession makes its way to the cemetery. Even in death, the black square was ever present, a testament to the lasting impact of his iconic painting.

So you see, the “Black Square” wasn’t just a piece of art on a canvas. It was a symbol of a new era in art, a personal motif for Malevich, and a lasting icon that continues to inspire and challenge artists today. It serves as a reminder that art isn’t just about what’s on the canvas. It’s also about the emotions it stirs, the conversations it sparks, and the change it inspires. And that, my friend, is the true power of the “Black Square.”

Hidden Depths of the Black Square

Picture this: You’re standing in front of the “Black Square” in a museum, soaking in its stark simplicity. It’s just a black square on a white canvas, right? But what if I told you that beneath that solid black surface lies a hidden world, full of color and complexity?

Flashback to 2015. An x-ray machine hums to life, and art historians hold their breath as they peer into the depths of the “Black Square.” And what do they find? Beneath the seemingly monochromatic surface are not one, but two layers of vibrant, intricate geometric shapes. Talk about a plot twist!

So, what does this revelation tell us about our man Malevich and his artistic process? Well, it shows us that he wasn’t just slapping black paint on a canvas and calling it a day. There was a whole process of experimentation and evolution that went into the creation of the “Black Square.”

Those hidden layers suggest that Malevich might have started with a more traditional, colorful composition before deciding to cover it all up with black paint. Maybe he was trying to break free from the conventional art of his time. Or maybe he was wrestling with his artistic vision, caught between the pull of the old and the allure of the new.

And that, my friends, is the beauty of the “Black Square.” It’s more than meets the eye. It’s a testament to the power of art to evolve and transform, just like the artist who created it. So the next time you look at the “Black Square,” remember the layers beneath the surface. Remember the journey of an artist daring to challenge the norms and push the boundaries of what art can be. After all, isn’t that what art’s all about?

The Black Square in the Soviet Era and Beyond

Let’s step into our time machine and fast forward to the Soviet era. Stalin is in power, and Malevich’s “Black Square” has mysteriously disappeared from public view. What happened? Well, let’s just say that Stalin wasn’t exactly a fan of Malevich’s ground-breaking work. He preferred art that depicted social realism, and a black square on a white canvas didn’t quite fit the bill.

Decades passed, and the “Black Square” remained hidden away, its power and significance almost forgotten. That is, until the 1980s, when glasnost and perestroika began to thaw the icy grip of state censorship. Suddenly, the “Black Square” was back in the spotlight. It was finally exhibited again, its stark simplicity a stark contrast to the state-approved art that had dominated the Soviet era.

Fast forward to today, and the “Black Square” has not only endured but thrived. Its influence can be seen in the works of modern artists and designers around the world. From minimalist interior design to edgy fashion collections, the simplicity and boldness of the “Black Square” continue to inspire and challenge.

So, what’s the takeaway here? Well, it’s that art – real, powerful, challenging art – can’t be suppressed forever. Even when it’s hidden away, its influence seeps out, shaping and transforming the world in unexpected ways. And that’s the legacy of Malevich’s “Black Square”: a testament to the enduring power of art to challenge, to inspire, and to endure. Now that’s something worth celebrating!

Technical details

• Medium: The “Black Square” was painted using oil paint on linen.
• Dimensions: The painting measures approximately 79.5 cm × 79.5 cm (31 in × 31 in).
• Number of Versions: There were four known versions of the painting made by Malevich, spanning from 1915 to late 1920s or early 1930s.
• Exhibitions: The painting was first exhibited at the Last Futurist Exhibition of Paintings 0,10 in Petrograd (now St. Petersburg), Russia, in 1915.
• Underlying Images: An X-ray analysis conducted in 2015 revealed that beneath the solid black square, there are two more layers of paintings consisting of colorful, intricate geometric shapes.
• Current Condition: Over the years, the painting has suffered significant damage due to poor preservation conditions. Cracking and decay are noticeable, particularly on the original 1915 version.
• Location: The painting is currently held by the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, Russia.
• Style and Movement: The painting belongs to the Suprematism movement, which emphasizes geometric forms and pure abstraction.
• Symbolism: Beyond its physical attributes, the painting also carries profound symbolic weight, having been used as a motif by Malevich throughout his life, and even appearing on his coffin at his funeral.

Comparing other paintings

Who is the artist behind “Black Square”?

The painting “Black Square” was created by Kazimir Malevich, a Russian artist of Polish descent.

When was “Black Square” created?

The first version of “Black Square” was painted in 1915. Malevich created four versions in total, with the last one believed to be painted in the late 1920s or early 1930s.

What movement does “Black Square” belong to?

“Black Square” is considered a defining work of Suprematism, an art movement that was proclaimed by Malevich himself.

What does “Black Square” represent?

While the interpretation can vary, Malevich referred to it as the “zero point of painting.” It represents a radical break from traditional representational art and a move towards pure abstraction.

What is unique about the composition of “Black Square”?

“Black Square” is radically non-representational, consisting only of a solid black square against a white field. In 2015, x-ray analysis revealed two hidden layers beneath the black square, showing intricate, colorful geometric designs.

Where is “Black Square” now?

“Black Square” is currently held in the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, Russia.

Why did “Black Square” disappear from public view during Stalin’s era?

The painting represented avant-garde art, which was seen as a threat to the state-controlled social realism that was favored during Stalin’s era.

What is the current condition of “Black Square”?

Due to poor preservation conditions, the painting has suffered significant damage, including cracking and decay, particularly in the original 1915 version.

In the realm of abstract art, few pieces carry as much weight or significance as Kazimir Malevich’s “Black Square”. This iconic painting, produced amidst the political turmoil of early 20th century Russia, represents a pivotal moment in the evolution of modern art. Serving as the cornerstone of the Suprematist movement, “Black Square” stands as a symbol of pure abstraction and emotional resonance, far removed from the traditional confines of representational art. Despite its deceptively simple facade, its philosophical depth, its surprising complexity revealed by modern technology, and its enduring influence on contemporary artists make “Malevich’s Black Square” a fascinating subject of study for art enthusiasts and historians alike.

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WATCH LIVE: 2024 Republican National Convention Night 3

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• Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/10-years-after-tragedy-that-claimed-298-lives-relatives-grieve-those-killed-when-mh17-was-shot-down

10 years after tragedy that claimed 298 lives, relatives grieve those killed when MH17 was shot down

VIJFHUIZEN, Netherlands (AP) — Grieving families recited the names and ages Wednesday of all 298 passengers and crew killed when Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over Ukraine 10 years ago, as they marked the anniversary of the tragedy at a solemn ceremony near Amsterdam.

The relatives, some weeping or choking back tears, named brothers, sisters, parents, grandchildren, grandparents nieces and nephews in a litany of lost lives that lasted 30 minutes.

“It’s a black day,” said Evert van Zijtveld, who lost his daughter and son, Frederique, 19, and Robert-Jan, 18, along with their grandparents.

“What’s very important is that we mentioned the name of the loved ones … and it’s very important that we remember them,” he added.

An international investigation concluded that the Buk missile system that destroyed MH17 belonged to the Russian 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade and was fired from territory controlled by pro-Moscow separatists. The investigation concluded the missile was driven into Ukraine from a Russian military base near the city of Kursk and returned there after the plane was shot down.

Moscow has repeatedly denied responsibility. In 2022, a Dutch court convicted in absentia two Russians and a Ukrainian separatist for their role in the jet’s downing.

READ MORE: ‘Strong indications’ Putin approved supplying missile that shot down MH17, investigators say

“Although the court formally found Russian puppets guilty, the Kremlin authorities led by Putin and his accomplices are behind this crime,” Ukraine’s General Staff said in a statement published on Facebook.

Commemoration services took place Wednesday in the Netherlands, Australia and the site of the crash in the Russia-controlled part of the Donetsk region, as the war in Ukraine raged on.

Hundreds of family members were joined by joined Dutch King Willem-Alexander, politicians and diplomats at a memorial in the Netherlands close to Schiphol, the airport the Kuala Lumpur-bound Boeing 777 departed from on July 17, 2014.

Australian Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus represented his country at the Dutch memorial site, where 298 trees commemorate each victim.

“Today we remain unwavering in our determination to ensure truth, justice and accountability for the victims and their loved ones,” Dreyfus said.

Many of the families carried sunflowers like those that grew at the scene of the crash, and laid them next to trees. Flags of the countries that lost citizens hung at half-staff next to a field of blooming sunflowers.

Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof pledged to keep up the fight to hold accountable those responsible.

“And I know it too: justice takes time,” he said. “But we have the time. And the patience. And the perseverance. That is my message to the guilty parties, and my promise to you.”

The ceremony in Australia was held at the Parliament House in Canberra.

“I don’t think anyone intended to bring down a passenger plane. So in that sense, I’m heartbroken that the (Ukraine) conflict continues,” Paul Guard told Australian Broadcasting Corp. His parents, Roger and Jill Guard were among 38 Australian citizens and permanent residents killed.

“But I think that a lot of families would really have just liked an acknowledgment that what happened was wrong and that Russia should not have been waging war,” the son added.

Russia continues to be pursued under international law by the Netherlands in the European Court of Human Rights and by Australia and the Netherlands jointly through the International Civil Aviation Organization Council, or ICAO, over its alleged role in bringing down MH17.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong told Wednesday’s service in Canberra that she was “appalled” that Russia had withdrawn from the ICAO proceedings in June.

READ MORE: Dutch court convicts 3 for 2014 downing of flight MH17 over Ukraine

“The case will continue and we will not be deterred in our commitment to hold Russia to account,” Wong told the gathering.

At the crash site in the village of Hrabov, several dozen local residents brought flowers, stuffed animals and even a model airplane to a small memorial stone installed in a field near where some of the wreckage was found. Some struggled to hold back tears, recalling the explosion that shattered windows in their homes and bodies falling from the sky. “It hurts,” one woman said. “I feel sorry for the people.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov refused to comment on Wong’s remarks, reiterating that Moscow’s position on the matter is “well known.” He said: “No arguments from the Russian side were taken into account, we did not participate in the investigation, and therefore our attitude to these conclusions is well known.”

The Netherlands was home to 196 of the victims while 38 hailed from Australia. Victims also came from Malaysia, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, the Philippines, Canada, New Zealand, Vietnam, Israel, Italy, Romania, the United States and South Africa.

Malaysia also reiterated its commitment to seek justice and hold those responsible for the tragedy accountable.

“The Government of Malaysia is resolute that the process must pursue truth, justice and accountability,” the transport ministry said in a statement.

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Ukraine Is Targeting Crimea, a Critical Base for Russia’s Invasion

Newly armed with deep-strike missiles, Kyiv is trying to degrade Russian abilities on the peninsula, aiming at airfields, air defenses and logistics hubs.

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By Marc Santora

Reporting from Odesa, Ukraine

In a clear night sky above the shores of Odesa, the faint glow from missiles streaks over the Black Sea.

For much of the war, it was one-way traffic, with Russia using the occupied Crimean Peninsula first as a launchpad for its full-scale invasion and then as a staging ground for routine aerial bombardments.

Ukraine, now armed with American-made precision missiles, is for the first time capable of reaching every corner of Crimea — and the missiles are increasingly flying in both directions.

It is a new strategic push as Kyiv seeks to raise the cost for Russian occupation forces that have long used the peninsula as a base of operations just off Ukraine’s southern coast.

While it is unlikely to have much effect on the front line, Ukraine’s campaign with the long-range version of the Army Tactical Missile Systems , known as ATACMS, appears meant to force the Kremlin to make difficult choices about where to deploy some of its most valuable air defenses to protect critical military infrastructure.

At the NATO summit in Washington this past week, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said the Crimean campaign would have limited effect as long as Moscow can move its bombers to the safety of air bases deep in Russia. He pressed the Biden administration to lift restrictions so Kyiv can extend its strikes deep into Russia.

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