Art in Crisis: W. E. B. Du Bois and the Struggle for African American Identity and Memory
"Amy Kirschke's Art in Crisis is a fine, significant book, long overdue. It reminds us again of the power of illustrations from Daumier to Du Bois to expose cant and corruption and to promote honesty and justice. —David Levering Lewis, University Professor, NYU, and author of the Pulitzer Prize—winning tw" —volume biography of W.E.B. Du Bois"... a reminder of the usage and power of visual images to shape ideas and instill self—worth and opinions in American society.... Recommended. General readers; lower—division undergraduates through faculty." —Choice"As the first book to examine Du Bois's use of imagery to create racial pride and convey moral outrage, Art in Crisis offers important insights into the history of visual journalism as well as the contributions of one of the twentieth—century's most significant black periodicals..." —Jhistory"... valuable. It supplies a concise account of Du Bois's inclusion of art during his editorship of the magazine. It focuses us on the abundance and high quality of the art included and begins the important job of remembering and documenting the work of black artists now too often forgotten.... Art in Crisis makes readily accessible to a wide range of readers a rich sampling of work from The Crisis's formative period." —Elizabeth Ammons, Tufts University, AFRICAN AMERICAN REVIEW, Vol.42.2 (rec'd April 2009)"An important contribution to the study of African American art as well as to our understanding of the Harlem Renaissance, W.E.B. Du Bois, African American politics, and African American journalism. Very little work has been done on African American periodical art [or] on Du Bois's use of images. This alone makes this a valuable book." —Cary D. Wintz, author of Black Culture and the Harlem Renaissance"[T]he paramount value of Kirschke's laudable acoomplishment is that she has simultaneously added to the Du Boisian mystique, while providing a new understanding and appreciation for his role in shaping the manner in which African Americans viewed themselves and were perceived by others." —Randall O. Westbrook, Fairleigh-Dickinson University, Journal of African American History, Vol. 94.1 Fall 2009