Published in association with the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, St. James Guide to Black Artists features biographical and career information, as well as brief critical essays, on nearly 400 of the most prominent black artists. Approximately 75 percent of the artists profiled were alive at the time of publication. Also included are a small number of important artists from the nineteenth century.
All the entrants in the book are visual artists who work primarily as painters, sculptors and printmakers. But important artists in other media, such as photography, have also been included. Though the great majority of the entrants are from the U.S., about 100 are from Africa, the Caribbean, Brazil and elsewhere. Each entry provides:
- Biographical and career information
- Selected exhibitions
- Collections
- Publications
- Comments by the artist (when available)
- A signed, critical essay by an authority in the field
Illustrating the book are 300 photographs of artists and their works. Other value-added features include a selected bibliography on black artists as well as medium, nationality and illustration indexes.