'Hogarth's Blacks: Images of Blacks in Eighteenth Century English Art' by David Dabydeen

[annwfyn.livejournal.com]

I came across this book quite randomly, whilst hunting for something totally different in my university library, so it was a bit of a surprise. It is an academic text, so it's a tad on the dry side, but it is really interesting and it ties in very well to one of my longstanding interests, which is the history of race as a social construct.

'Hogarth's Blacks' is really an art history book, primarily examining the ways that Black people were portrayed in 18th century English art, but there's a fair bit of backstory in there as well - the origins of the Black English population, a little bit on how Black people were portrayed in medieval and renaissance art. I was surprised to learn how different it was - before the advent of the slave trade you see Black figures in art being portrayed as kings or queens - figures with their own dignity. One example given is of Balthazar, one of the three magi in the nativity story. In medieval and renaissance art he is normally shown as a regal figure, standing before the Virgin Mary as an equal. With the advent of the slave trade this all changes, and suddenly he is predominantly shown kneeling or in another subservient position.

Another thing I found really really interesting was the very different way in which class and race interacted in the 18th century. In the far far more class conscious world of 18th century England, Dabydeen sees a lot more solidarity between working class Whites and the Black population of England. In contrast to the aristocratic portraits in which Black people appear as servants, or pets, he sees Black people appearing in scenes of working class life, apparently unselfconscious and assimilated.

'Hogarth's Blacks' isn't a novel. It's an art history text book, and I don't know how easily available it is to most people, but if you can get your hands on it, I do recommend it. It's very interesting, very easy to read, and covers an area of history which is often shamefully neglected.

Comments

[kethlenda.livejournal.com]

This sounds really interesting--I'll have to look it up!

[rydra_wong]

Ooh. You may know this already, but Dabydeen's also a novelist and poet, as well as an academic; one of his novels (A Harlot's Progress) is set in the 18th-century London and riffs on a character from one of Hogarth's pictures.

It would be fascinating to see how it relates to this book.

[annwfyn.livejournal.com]

~nods~ I knew he was a novelist - it's one of the reasons I knew his name and grabbed this book when I saw it. I really would like to get hold of 'A Harlot's Progress', but it's not shown up on bookmooch yet. I may just crack and buy it at some point soon, or see if I can order it from my local library.

Progress!

[snipervolk.livejournal.com]

PoC in art history is really interesting to me.

It's sort of funny how Rembrandt used to go to the Jewish quarters of Amsterdam to dig up models for his Biblical paintings, and four hundred years later in Hollywood movies they're played by white guys with a tan.

[holyschist.livejournal.com]

Oooh, that sounds really interesting.

[vegablack62.livejournal.com]

I fascinated by how certain aspects of social life can get worse rather than better. We tend to think the world moves forward on an upward slope toward greater tolerance. Just as the society becomes less class conscious and working people begin to get more education and freedom society becomes more racist.

I'm always interested in nonfiction. I think I have heard of the author.

[annwfyn.livejournal.com]

It's something that surprised me, and sort of depresses me. It makes me wonder what kind of intolerance will rise up when racism finally begins to fade away (which I really hope it will). Because the more I read about it, the more it seems that humanity is not very good at not creating various forms of 'us' and 'them'.

[vegablack62.livejournal.com]

Yes that seems to be the most basic quality in humans the desire to create a group that every one is allowed to exploit and ridicule. I see it even in fantasy movies and literature, where old racist and antisemitic canards are dug up and applied to some non-human rubber creature from another planet, as if the writer/director needed someone to apply them to and picked the nonhuman since they could no longer apply it to a human. Why use them at all? In some realistic movies nasty statements are applied to poor white people "trailer trash" as if no one could go through a movie without denigrating someone.

[supermouse.livejournal.com]

Added to my to-buy list, and I think this will probably be the first book I do buy. Thanks for the review.