In the Black Fantastic

“A richly illustrated exploration of Black culture at its most wildly imaginative and artistically ambitious… assembles art and imagery from across the African diaspora. Embracing the mythic and the speculative, it recycles and reconfigures elements of fable, folklore, science fiction, spiritual traditions, ceremonial pageantry and the legacies of Afrofuturism. In works that span photography, painting, sculpture, cinema, graphic arts, music and architecture, [the book] shows how speculative fictions in Black art and culture are boldly reimagining perspectives on race, gender and identity. Standing apart from Western narratives of progress and modernity premised on the historical subjugation of people of color, it celebrates the ways that Black artists draw inspiration from African-originated myths, beliefs and knowledge systems, confounding the Western dichotomy between the real and unreal, the scientific and the supernatural. This lavishly illustrated volume brings together works by leading artists such as Kara Walker, Chris Ofili and Ellen Gallagher; explores groundbreaking films such as Daughters of the Dust and Get Out; considers the radical politics of pan-Africanism and postcolonialism; and much more. Each section … includes an introductory text by Ekow Eshun and longer essays by Eshun, Kameelah L. Martin, and Michelle D. Commander.”–Page 4 of cover.