Book Review: Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures by The National Museum of African American History and Culture et alios
Originally posted on 10 Dec 2023
- Title: Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures
- Author: The National Museum of African American History and Culture, Kevin Strait, Kinshasha Holman Conwill
- Year: 2023
This was a fun exploration of African American culture. It’s a vibrant book, elaborately designed and printed and packed with beautiful artwork and photography.
It’s also full of essays from revolutionary African American artists like N. K. Jemisin, Nona Hendryx, and Vernon Reid. These essays trace the thread of Afrofuturism all the way back to the beginning of Africans in North America, showing how any sort of narrative that showed a future that included black people was a form of protest and the start of Afrofuturism as a movement.
I’m really glad I came across this one at the library and that I took the time to pick it up. It’s already led me to look up a lot of musicians I previously wasn’t familiar with, so my Afrofuturistic explorations will continue even though the book has returned to the library.