Art Historian Darby English on Why the New Black Renaissance Might Actually Represent a Step Backwards
Recently, English shared with me his reflections on our current moment, how art has changed over the past several decades, and why generalizations of Black art are so problematic. You are very keen on the problems of generalization within the art world with regards to how African American art is taught, critiqued, and discussed. What is your biggest problem with these generalizations? How, in your opinion, can historians work to remove and/or reduce their use of generalizing? My issue with generalization is that it feels an irresponsible way to respond to art’s diversity and specificity. If...