Archibald J. Motley Jr. (1891- 1981) devoted his prodigious and critically acclaimed career to portraying African Americans seriously rather than as caricatures, hoping that honest African American art would become accepted and a subsequent synthesis would occur, creating an American art form appreciated by all, regardless of racial identity. Drawing on the artist's paintings and eloquent writings; recently unearthed taped interviews; unpublished paintings and sketches; and her own interviews, research, and firsthand analysis, Amy M. Mooney examines Motley's work from the 1920s through the 1940s and discusses his significant contributions to the American art scene. Color images reveal the breadth of Motley's subject matter, from early portraiture to café society to genre scenes. Out of print.
