History of Art in Africa

I studied and taught African art before this text existed, using mainly exhibition catalogs and theme-based books such as Frank Willet's "African Art." This book presents the information found in those sources in a single source. It moves around the continent by geographic area, which is the way African art is usually taught, so it is easy to adapt to a course. It is readable without dumbing down. Students like it. Beyond the classroom, it is a good reference source because it includes information about so many ethnic groups--far more than a single course can cover. I have a few criticisms. For one, I would like to have a more continuous thread in the treatment of non-Islamic art of Northern Africa. In the account of material from Zimbabwe, I would like the authors to mention Peter Garlake's interpretations of Great Zimbabwe and rock paintings. Visona et al. illustrate a rock painting that Garlake calls "The great recumbent figure of an archetypical trancer" (The Hunter's Vision, pl. XXXII). While Garlake makes a persuasive argument that paintings such as this reveal substantial continuity with the modern-day San, Visona et al. simply say that the painting is too old to interpret. They shouldn't disregard the views of the preeminent scholar in the area. Also, I wish the components of the captions were more clear, such as by following the example of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It would help to use the term "peoples" after ethnic groups so that the ethnonyms are easier to distinguish from from place names, etc. They could include the names of major groups along with the subgroups in the captions, as the Met does--for example Kota peoples, Hongwe subgroup. That would help to unify the style areas. There is usually a place in the text that clarifies the groupings, but it would help to do so in the captions, too. Still, the book is an excellent introduction to African art by prominent scholars.

I bought this book for an African Art class that i was taking. This book is overly informative and captivating. I would recommend it to anyone interested in learning more about African Art!

I simply wish that I had this book and/or Dr. Poynor's courses in West African and Central African Art prior to living in Central Africa. Now that I had these courses, I find that this book is less a formal text and more a comprehensive guide to understanding the art forms created in the various regions of Africa by the peoples and cultures. This book is a must for anyone who has a true interest in following this facinating subject. I especially recommend this book to anyone planning to visit or live anywhere in Africa, particularly the Sub-saharan regions. It brings to all, the reality of such a facinating and prevously skimmed subject, without interjecting personal belief or opinion. All facts in the book are well researched and presented.

I took an african arts class with Poynor and he used this book and the slide images. This was a wonderful tool. I usually HATE reading art books but this one read like a recreational book. GREAT illustrations! If u would like to learn more about the culture this is definately the book to get.

This is the most well-written, comprehensive, and lucid survey of African art available to date. I am using it as the primary text for my introduction to African art at both Princeton University and York College, CUNY and expect my students to come away with a valuable reference text that will not become outdated to quickly.