Richard J. Powell's 'Colorstruck!' Explores Race and Color in Black American Art

Art historian Richard J. Powell's forthcoming book 'Colorstruck! Painting, Pigment, Affect' examines the intersection of race and chromatic expression in Black American art. Published by Princeton University Press this September, the volume analyzes works by Jacob Lawrence, Alma Thomas, Lorna Simpson, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Nina Chanel Abney, and others. Powell reinterprets the slang term 'colorstruck'—historically associated with colorism—as a lens for understanding how artists use intense palettes to create disruptive, expressionistic works. The book features archival photographs and numerous artworks, including William H. Johnson's 'Nude' (c. 1939), Hervé Télémaque's 'Négrerie' (1974), Alma Thomas's 'The Eclipse' (1970), Malcolm Bailey's 'Untitled' (1972), and Charles Alston's 'Girl in a Red Dress' (1934). Powell connects universal color perception to the specific context of race in America, exploring the dynamic interplay between paint, pigment, and viewer affect.