In her piece, Kellie Jones introduces us to “Now Dig This! Art and Black Los Angeles 1960-1980”, which focuses on the art of African-Americans in southern California. According to the MoMA PS1 website, the exhibit will be on view from October 21, 2012 to March 11, 2013. The African-American artists of southern California, along with artists of other ethnic backgrounds, helped to further develop and expand the styles and types of American Art, while also expressing the tension of the Civil Rights Movement and the history of black oppression.
However, New York Times art critic Ken Johnson claimed just days after the opening that the exhibit contained an inherent paradox: the style of these artists, particularly the assemblage style, was “appropriated by the artists in “Now Dig This!”. Rather than being expressions of style, Johnson interprets the majority of the exhibit as promoting solidarity among black Americans who experienced (and, in my view, continue to experience) the harsh struggles of race relation in the US. He essentially argues that this divides viewers, as only black Americans will be able to relate.
In all fairness, I am only a student and I have never seen this exhibit, but I cannot believe that Johnson’s critique is correct. To claim that only people of certain backgrounds and races can “feel” art, can appreciate art is inherently wrong. In my opinion, the purpose of art is very well expressed by Ruth Waddy’s idea of “social value”, as Jones describes. Art has the power to make people think, interpret, reflect, and appreciate.
As Jones demonstrates, black artists did often draw inspiration from the Civil Rights Movement, racial tensions and identity, and the violence and oppression of black Americans. But Johnson claims that the only value of this art is in its depiction of these inspirations. At best, this claim reflects a serious misunderstanding of American art, and at worst, this reflects the still-ingrained racist belief in the inferiority of black artists. The art of “Now Dig This” has definite historical value as the work of artists who were marginalized by their race. But it also reflects emerging styles of modern art, including assemblage, photography, and sculpture. To limit “Now Dig This!” as strictly historical in value negates the work of black women and men as artists.