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Equally thorough and successful in his presentation of new readings to familiar works of art, English reminds the reader with each carefully considered example that 'to take this art seriously is to traffic in the unfamiliar.' -- Jennifer Jordan, Camerawork English's discursive and dialectical way of comprehending the practices of black artists emancipates both 'black art' and 'black artists' and provides a necessary road for creative ways to 'do' African American art history. -- Steven Nelson, Art Bulletin ...How to See is a timely and relevant book, opening a debate that is long overdue. -- Art Review How to See a Work of Art in Total Darkness is a standout piece of work at several levels. It is one of the smartest, subtlest, and most compassionate books coming out of the academy to deal with the fraught issues pertaining to identity politics. It is heartening to encounter a work that pushes through the stagnant impasse that the identity debate has become. --Miwon Kwon, Department of Art History, University of California, Los Angeles This groundbreaking and lucid book expands the social and intellectual context for recent African-American art. It reminds us that this work--far from simply 'representing the race'--resonates with multiple meanings and influences. Rescuing this art from the narrow-mindedness of its critics, English illuminates the significance it holds for all of us. --Maurice Berger, Senior Research Scholar, Center for Art, Design and Visual Culture, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Set against today's fast-paced, cut-and-paste art spectacles, Rauschenberg's collages, combines, art and technology experiments, and multimedia performances may seem old hat, a bunch of outmoded forms and tamed ideas. But through impeccable archival research and a detailed rereading of Rauschenberg's early works and the context of their emergence and immediate reception, Branden Joseph revivifies the radical spirit of the old. Random Order's recasting of the not yet canonical artist as a Deleuzian deconstructionist and an inheritor of Artaud's theater of cruelty is bound to be controversial among not only Rauschenberg scholars but also historians of the postwar neo-avant-garde. All the better to encourage a reimagining of the present. --Miwon Kwon, Department of Art History, University of California, Los Angeles English's discursive and dialectical way of comprehending the practices of black artists emancipates both 'black art' and 'black artists' and provides a necessary road for creative ways to 'do' African American art history. Steven Nelson Art Bulletin Equally thorough and successful in his presentation of new readings to familiar works of art, English reminds the reader with each carefully considered example that 'to take this art seriously is to traffic in the unfamiliar.' Jennifer Jordan Camerawork How to See a Work of Art in Total Darkness is a standout piece of work at several levels. It is one of the smartest, subtlest, and most compassionate books coming out of the academy to deal with the fraught issues pertaining to identity politics. It is heartening to encounter a work that pushes through the stagnant impasse that the identity debate has become. Miwon Kwon , Department of Art History, University of California, Los Angeles ... How to See is a timely and relevant book, opening a debate that is long overdue. Art Review *How to See a Work of Art in Total Darkness* is a standout piece of work at several levels. It is one of the smartest, subtlest, and most compassionate books coming out of the academy to deal with the fraught issues pertaining to identity politics. It is heartening to encounter a work that pushes through the stagnant impasse that the identity debate has become. --Miwon Kwon, Department of Art History, University of California, Los Angeles

English's discursive and dialectical way of comprehending the practices of black artists emancipates both 'black art' and 'black artists' and provides a necessary road for creative ways to 'do' African American art history. —Steven Nelson , Art Bulletin Equally thorough and successful in his presentation of new readings to familiar works of art, English reminds the reader with each carefully considered example that 'to take this art seriously is to traffic in the unfamiliar.' —Jennifer Jordan, Camerawork ...How to See is a timely and relevant book, opening a debate that is long overdue. —Art Review

English's discursive and dialectical way of comprehending the practices of black artists emancipates both 'black art' and 'black artists' and provides a necessary road for creative ways to 'do' African American art history. -- Steven Nelson Art Bulletin Equally thorough and successful in his presentation of new readings to familiar works of art, English reminds the reader with each carefully considered example that 'to take this art seriously is to traffic in the unfamiliar.' -- Jennifer Jordan Camerawork ... How to See is a timely and relevant book, opening a debate that is long overdue. Art Review

English's discursive and dialectical way of comprehending the practices of black artists emancipates both 'black art' and 'black artists' and provides a necessary road for creative ways to 'do' African American art history. -- Steven Nelson * Art Bulletin * Equally thorough and successful in his presentation of new readings to familiar works of art, English reminds the reader with each carefully considered example that 'to take this art seriously is to traffic in the unfamiliar.' -- Jennifer Jordan * Camerawork * ... How to See is a timely and relevant book, opening a debate that is long overdue. * Art Review *

Author Information

Darby English is Carl Darling Buck Professor in the Department of Art History at the University of Chicago.

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