Hard Art

Engaging with five decades of Black abstraction and its augmentations, from Sam Gilliam to Adam Pendleton

Accompanying the major exhibition at MoMA PS1, Hard Art examines the legacy of abstract painting by Black artists in the US from 1969 to today. Juxtaposing historical paintings by practitioners who came to prominence in the 1970s with recent conceptually driven practices that incorporate sculpture, video and sound, the publication proposes a network of practices seldom seen or theorized together. An introductory essay by Connie Butler, the Agnes Gund Director at MoMA PS1, suggests a number of cross-generational connections between artists that emphasize the enduring relevance and increasing urgency of abstraction in shaping the current political imaginary. The publication also features scholarly contributions from Jessica Bell Brown and Erich Kessel; texts by artists Aria Dean, Torkwase Dyson and Rindon Johnson; and an illustrated chronology by Sheldon Gooch and June Kitahara.
Artists include: Frank Bowling, Beverly Buchanan, Ed Clark, Maren Hassinger, Senga Nengudi, Martin Puryear, Jack Whitten.