The Image of the Black in Western Art. Volume 1, From the Pharaohs to the Fall of the Roman EmpireThe Image of the Black in Western Art. Volume 1, From the Pharaohs to the Fall of the Roman Empire

In an idealistic response to segregation in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s, two emigrés from France to the United States, Dominique de Menil and her husband, began a research project and photo archive devoted to the image of Blacks in western art. As art patrons and humanitarians, their aim was to use art and research to bring dignity and humanity to the fore. What began as an anticipated one-year undertaking expanded into a 15-year project culminating with publication of five volumes (some in two parts). These publications (which appeared in the 1970s and 1980s in both French and English editions) contained a treasure trove of images (superb photos of paintings, sculptures, and other works of art) accompanied by scholarly essays; the scope ranged from ancient Egypt to European masters to contemporary black artists. The present volume is the first volume of a new project--a collaboration of the Belknap Press (an imprint of Harvard U. Press), the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research, and the Menil Collection (which now contains more than 30,000 images). When completed the project will comprise five volumes, containing within these volumes 10 books, eight of which will be revised editions of the original works and two of which will offer additional coverage of art in the 20th century and in African art. The essays are a mix of newly commissioned studies and articles from the original publications. This first volume (in a 10x11.5" format) includes an introduction to the new edition by Jeremy Tanner incorporating new research on the controversial topic of the representation of black people in the ancient world; providing context, the preface and introduction to the first edition are appended. The project is being shaped by general editors David Bindman (emeritus, art history, University College London) and Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard U.). Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
In The 1960s, as a response to segregation in the United States, the influential art patron Dominique de Menil began a research project and a photo archive called The Image of the Black in Western Art. Now, fifty years later, as the first American president of African American descent serves his historic term in office, her mission has been re-invigorated through the collaboration of Harvard University Press and the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research to present new editions of the coveted five original books and the anticipated new volumes which shall complete the series. The completed set will include ten sumptuous books in five volumes with up-to-date introductions and more full-color illustrations, printed on high-quality art stock for books that will last a lifetime.

This monumental publication offers expert commentary and a lavishly illustrated history of the representations of people of African descent ranging from the ancient images of Pharaohs created by unknown hands to the works of the great European masters such as Bosch, Rembrandt, Rubens, and Hogarth to stunning new creations by contemporary black artists. Featuring thousands of beautiful, moving, and often little-known images of black people, including queens and slaves, saints and soldiers, children and gods, The Image of the Black in Western Art provides a treasury of masterpieces from four millennia---a testament to the black experience in the West and a tribute to art's enduring power to shape our common humanity.

The new edition of Volume I offers a comprehensive look at the fascinating and controversial subject of the representation of black people in the ancient world. Classic essays by distinguished scholars are aptly contextualized by Jeremy Tanner's new introduction, which guides the reader through enormous changes in the field in the wake of the "Black Athena" theory.

In the 1960s, art patron Dominique de Menil founded an image archive showing the ways that people of African descent have been represented in Western art. Highlights from her collection appeared in three large-format volumes that quickly became collector’s items. A half-century later, Harvard University Press and the Du Bois Institute are proud to publish a complete set of ten sumptuous books, including new editions of the original volumes and two additional ones.

The new edition of From the Pharaohs to the Fall of the Roman Empire offers a comprehensive look at the fascinating and controversial subject of the representation of black people in the ancient world. Classic essays by distinguished scholars are aptly contextualized by Jeremy Tanner’s new introduction, which guides the reader through enormous changes in the field in the wake of the “Black Athena” story.