Chapman University's AH 342 Black Subjects in White Art History explores depictions of Black subjects in the western art tradition and the emergence of Black artists within an art historical canon that not only reflects white supremacy, but actively undermines the merit of Black cultural contributions and creative producers. Given this circumstance, students in this course interrogate the use of Black subjects by western artists, grapple with formal concerns that exclude Black aesthetics, and work to untangle philosophical themes that have long been used to support imperial systems while holding the elite white male perspective as superior, natural, and normal. In this work, we ask who is served by such narrow restrictions, and what responsibilities we might bear ourselves as viewers, artists, scholars, and citizens to challenge art’s institutions and systems?

This investigation aims to develop a clear and compelling understanding of the remarkably diverse and rewarding artistic expressions of Black artists and subjects from the early modern period to the present. The pages that follow record the research, discoveries and learning experiences of scholars tracing Black cultural production.