Overview

Cosmic Underground: A Grimoire of Black Speculative Discontent and its inspiration, the ground-breaking exhibition Unveiling Visions, applies a global lens and planetary vision to the black imagination, and brings this context to a wide survey of contemporary works. This book showcases illustrations, graphic design, literature, posters, and mixed-media digital and analog artworks along with insightful analysis by brilliant scholars and amazingly talented creatives. Cosmic Underground serves as a creative, experimental and educational motive force to analyze the growing corpus of work surrounding the nexus between politics and contemporary artistic production. This project includes the areas of black cultural production situated within Afrofuturism, AstroBlackness, the EthnoGothic, Magical Realism, Sword and Soul and the AfroSurreal.

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9781941958780

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Reviews

Cosmic Underground presents convincingly the global synergy of black life from the racial politics of Black Germany to the ontologies of West African orishas to the innovations of Detroit techno. This book affirms what we all hope to be true: the visualities, soundscapes, and literary legacies of Afrofuturism are real, thriving and expanding. Indeed, through beautiful language and stunning artwork, we are offered new perspectives on the past(s), present(s), and future(s) of black liberation. --Nikki A. Greene, Assistant Professor of Art, Wellesley College Cosmic Underground is a stunning collection of work, filled with work that resonates deep within the soul. It not only speaks of where we've been and what we've endured, but of where we can go and what we can do. And it does this in a visual language that sparks the imagination, giving us permission to break free of life's confines, as we search explore our own evolution as human beings. David F. Walker, author, Power Man and Iron Fist Cosmic Underground is a brilliant book that captures the Afrofuturist visual aesthetic as visual artists in the first quarter of the 21st Century embrace their platforms for transformation. This book underscores the desire for a radiant future/now that values humanity. Rich in color and heritage, this book highlights the vitality of artists stretching through time, both forward and backward, to affirm an eternal position in the greater universe. --Ytasha Womack, filmmaker, author, Afrofuturism: The World of Black Sci Fi & Fantasy Culture Cosmic Underground reads and looks like a mash-up of Romare Bearden, MF Doom and Jean-Michel Basquiat on a 'ride or die' excursion through the deep space(s) of Astro/Blackness, Afrofuturism, and the Afro-Surreal. Enjoy. --Adilifu Nama, Ph.D, Professor of African American Studies at Loyola Marymount University, author, Super Black: American Pop Culture and Black Superheroes

Author Information

John Jennings is a retired associate professor in the Department of History at Trent University, former member of the Canadian Equestrian Team, and former member for Ontario on the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. He has written extensively on the North West Mounted Police, Aboriginal-European relations in the Canadian and American wests, and the role of the canoe in Canadian history and culture.

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