Deborah Willis

Hundreds of photographs documenting the everyday and the extraordinary in black lives. Tucked away in the dusty halls of the Smithsonian archives and neglected by most historians, photographic images of black culture represent a vast, complex, interconnected web of different people, trends, and lifestyles. Although so much is absent from our collective memory, Deborah Willis has dug through the archives and hunted down the remnants that tell the wonderful and tragic history of a people. Tackling all subjects with bravery and frankness, Deborah Willis’s work is a treasure to behold. This collection presents the vibrant panorama of 20th-century black culture in America and beyond, forming one story that resonates throughout the world. Divided into segments that examine in detail such subjects as children, work, art, beauty, Saturday night, and Sunday morning, the photos detail the history and the evolution of a culture. Each photograph, hand-picked by Deborah Willis, America’s leading historian of African-American photography, celebrates the world of music, art, fashion, sports, family, worship, or play. With over 500 photographs from every time period from the birth of photography to the birth of hip hop, this book is a truly joyous exhibition of black culture. From Jesse Owens to Barry Bonds, Ella Fitzgerald to Halle Berry, street scenes to family portraits, Black: A Celebration of a Culture is an inspiration.

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