 | Race, Anthropology, and Politics in the Work of Wifredo Lam Subjects: Arts; Area Studies; Humanities; Politics & International Relations; Social Sciences; Politics & the Media; Art & Visual Culture; American Studies; History; Religion; Anthropology - Soc Sci; History of Art; Modern Art; Regional Art; Caribbean Studies; Social & Cultural Anthropology; Visual Anthropology; Latin American History; Indigenous Religions; Religion in Context; This book reinterprets Wifredo Lam's work with particular attention to its political implications, focusing on how these implications emerge from the artist's critical engagement with 20th-century anthropology. Field work conducted in Cuba, including the witnessing of actual Afro-Cuban religious ritual ceremonies and information collected from informants, enhances the interpretive background against which we can construe the meanings of Lam's art. In the process, Claude Cernuschi argues that Lam hoped to fashion a new hybrid style to foster pride and dignity in the Afro-Cuban community, as well as counteract the acute racism of Cuban culture. Claude Cernuschi is Professor of Art History at Boston College, USA. |
