Beyond Aesthetics: Use, Abuse, and Dissonance in African Art Traditions (Richard D. Cohen Lectures on African & African American Art) - Hardcover

Soyinka, Wole

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0300247621 ISBN 13: 9780300247626

Publisher: Yale University Press, 2020

Synopsis

An intimate reflection on culture and tradition, creativity and power, that draws on a lifetime’s commitment to aesthetic encounter

The playwright, poet, essayist, novelist, and Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka is also a longtime art collector. This book of essays offers a glimpse into the motivations of the collector, as well as a highly personal look at the politics of aesthetics and collecting. Detailing moments of first encounter with objects that drew him in and continue to affect him, Soyinka describes a world of mortals, muses, and deities that imbue the artworks with history and meaning.
 
Beyond Aesthetics is a passionate discussion of the role of identity, tradition, and originality in making, collecting, and exhibiting African art today. Soyinka considers objects that have stirred controversy, and he decries dogmatic efforts—whether colonial or religious—to suppress Africa’s artistic traditions. By turns poetic, provocative, and humorous, Soyinka affirms the power of collecting to reclaim tradition. He urges African artists, filmmakers, collectors, and curators to engage with their aesthetic and cultural histories.

About this title

Book Description:

This resonant, powerful volume of essays by the Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka offers personal reflections on the politics of aesthetics and collecting in the context of African art today.

About the Author:

Wole Soyinka is a Nigerian playwright, poet, and political activist. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1986. His many publications include You Must Set Forth at Dawn and Of Africa.

About this edition

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 2020
• ISBN 10: 0300247621
• ISBN 13: 9780300247626
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 160