Customer Reviews

Testimony: Vernacular Art of the African-American South: The Ronald and June Shelp Collection

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Not your everyday book on Outsider Art. While most art books on this subject just showcase collectors' investments, Testimony includes critical studies on the ways collections have been organized and new historical information about the relationship between African American vernacular art and the Outsider movement. All of the essays address hard questions and give you something to think about. In a field noted for its ugly politics, collectors Ronald and June Shelp have been brave and responsible in supporting this kind of writing.

This is a weak survey of African-American "vernacular art". There are a few pieces of artwork shown for the various artists covered and a short bio. Nothing in depth in terms of the artwork shown or the information given. This is basically your standard collection of the usual suspects in folk art today. A little bit of Dial, Tolliver, Young, Burnside, Light, etc. And the pieces shown aren't that special. It's great they've got a couple of Mose Tolliver's, but they aren't that special in the overall spectrum of Mose's work. Since nothing is in-depth, I'm not really sure what the point of this book is as it adds nothing new to the field. It's great Ronald and June Shelp own all these pieces, but so what? Good for them, but the book adds nothing for the reader. A much better survey is Souls Grown Deep. Much more expensive, but well worth it.