Revelation: A Journey Into Abstraction

Revelation celebrates the expansive creativity of Black artists who have contributed to the rich fabric of abstraction through artworks in the collection of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

This beautifully illustrated volume reveals the profound range and depth of abstract art created by African American artists from the twentieth century to the present day. Through works from the Museum’s permanent collection, Revelation examines the significance of Black artists working in abstraction. It features artworks that span from subtly suggestive forms to entirely nonrepresentational expressions, including pieces by artists of the 1960s and ’70s such as Ed Clark, Sam Gilliam, Alma Thomas, and Jack Whitten, as well as contemporary artists including Theaster Gates, Rashid Johnson, Jennie C. Jones, Simone Leigh, and Julie Mehretu.

Following an introduction by Michelle D. Commander, Tuliza Fleming explores the importance of abstraction in shaping the Museum’s visual art collection, while Sarah Gordon examines the powerful relationship between artists’ materials and the human body. The essays are followed by five thematic plate sections—Natural World Refracted, The Shape of Sound, Colored Surfaces, Dreams Deferred, and Transcendent Visions—each introduced by conversations Janet Dees shares with a dynamic group of artists, curators, and scholars.

Through these explorations, Revelation highlights the many ways abstraction has served not only as a formal language for exploring shape, color, and form, but also as a powerful expression of cultural memory, identity, and transformation.