Black Artists Shaping Asian Art: Joan Kee & Steven Nelson

In this conversation, renowned art historians Joan Kee and Steven Nelson will discuss Black artists who have incorporated Asian techniques, motifs, philosophies, and forms into their innovative works, resulting in a rich artistic dialogue that expands the boundaries of modern and contemporary art. Drawing from Kee’s recent book, The Geometries of Afro Asia: Art beyond Solidarity (2023), this discussion will center around the ink paintings of Norman Lewis, the impact of travel in China on the sculptures of Barbara Chase-Riboud, and the role of Japanese landscape architecture in the work of Martin Puryear.

Venturing beyond existing stories of globalism, the intersection of Black and Asian art can help us reimagine art history as it expands, folds, curves, and bends across time and space.