robert farris thompson african art in motion

If he did not coin, he certainly standardized the term ‘Black Atlantic.’ He was a brilliant presenter, writer and teacher.

Thompson truly embodied the term ‘Maestro de Maestros.’ He was an absolute giant in the field of Afro-Atlantic history and art, respected by his peers for his groundbreaking work and multiple major articles and publications, particularly the seminal “Flash of the Spirit” (1984) and “Faces of the Gods” (1993). Berkeley in 1995 when local practitioners of African spirituality and musicians - including myself – demonstrated the powerful knowledge of tradition.

He curated game-changing national exhibitions such as “African Art in Motion,” “The Four Moments of the Sun: Kongo Art in Two Worlds,” and “Faces of the Gods: Art and Altars of Africa and the African Americas.” The latter had a run at U.C. Thompson was also an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the Maryland Institute College of Art. John Trumbull professor of the History of Art and professor of African American Studies at Yale University. ‘Master T,’ as his students and friends often referred to him, was the Col. He joined the faculty in 1964 and earned his Ph.D. Army veteran, he went to Yale on a football scholarship and earned a B.A. He removed the blinders and changed the way that generations of international students see African art.Ī U.S.

30, 1932, Thompson was a White Texan who spectacularly disproved the fallacy of White supremacy through his pioneering and tireless elevation and clarification of African art, philosophy and culture. He would’ve completed his 89th year on December 30.īorn on Dec. Prolific Professor Robert Farris Thompson passed in his sleep Monday morning due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease and having been weakened by a bout with COVID-19 at the beginning of the year.

Robert farris thompson african art in motion