Jack Whitten the messenger Messenger Whitten, Jack 1939-2018 artist. Kuo, Michelle Y. curator, author, contributor, interviewer. Lowry, Glenn D. writer of foreword. Aebi, Kiko contributor. Aranke, Sampada contributor. Mehretu, Julie 1970- contributor, artist. Godfrey, Mark (Mark Benjamin) contributor. Duffy, Michael (Art conservator) contributor. Ligon, Glenn 1960- contributor, artist. Lewis, George 1952- contributor, musician, composer. Shiff, Richard contributor. Smith, Anna Deavere contributor, interviewee. Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.) host institution. text bibliography biography exhibition catalogs. Exhibition catalogs. Exhibition catalogs. Catalogues d'exposition. nyu 2025 2025 monographic eng print 304 pages : illustrations (some color), facsimiles, portraits ; 31 cm "Jack Whitten offered the world a new way to see. Over nearly six decades, he dared to invent new forms of abstraction, constantly transforming both perception and our understanding of art in society. This gorgeously illustrated volume, with pathbreaking new perspectives and revelatory technical analyses of his innovative materials and processes, explores Whitten's wide-ranging and game-changing practice. Raised in the segregated Jim Crow South in the 1940s, Whitten undertook an extraordinary journey in becoming an artist, convinced that by changing form, he could help change the world. Despite pressure from peers to create figurative art, he was a key proponent of creating abstract art that responded to social turmoil; to his own identity as a Black artist; and to sea changes in technology. He created new ways of painting through a series of artistic inventions and strategies. He defied traditional boundaries between abstraction and representation, pictures and things, culture and technology, individual identity and global history. Published to accompany the first comprehensive retrospective of Whitten's art, this sumptuous catalog presents the full range of his career across painting, sculpture and works on paper, produced in New York and Greece, with texts by leading art historians and artists, and new technical analyses by conservators. Previously unpublished writings by the artist and an expansive chronology of Whitten's life, featuring newly discovered photographs and archival materials, bring into focus an artist who was as committed to human perception as to human rights, becoming one of the most important artists of our time."-- Foreword / Glenn D. Lowry -- Jack Whitten: A life / David Sledge, Helena Klevorn, Dana Liljegren, Kiko Aebi, and Eana Kim -- Jack Whitten: The messenger / Michelle Kuo -- On Birmingham 1964 and Head IV Lynching, 1964 / Sampada Aranke -- Fourteen billion years: Jack Whitten's light / Julie Mehretu -- On Homage to Malcolm, 1970 / Mark Godfrey -- On Siberian Salt Grinder, 1974, and the acrylic "Slab" paintings / Michael Duffy -- On Liquid Space I, 1976, and works on paper / Annie Wilker, with instrumental analysis by Catherine H. Stephens -- On black monoliths / Glenn Ligon -- On Ogun's Shield, 1989 / Dana Liljegren -- Jack Whitten: Cosmologist at work / George E. Lewis -- On Time's Dilemma, 2010 / Richard Shiff -- On Atopolis: For Édouard Glissant, 2014 / Anna Deavere Smith in conversation with Michelle Kuo -- Writings, letters, lectures, lesson plans by Jack Whitten -- Checklist of the exhibition -- Selected bibliography -- Contributors -- Lenders to the exhibition -- Acknowledgments -- Trustees of The Museum of Modern Art. Michelle Kuo ; with contributions by Michelle Kuo [and ten others] ; and research by David Sledge [and five others]. Published in conjunction with the exhibition 'Jack Whitten: The Messenger' at The Museum of Modern Art, New York, March 23-August 2, 2025. Includes bibliographical references (pages 295-297). Whitten, Jack 1939-2018 Exhibitions Whitten, Jack 1939-2018 Criticism and interpretation Whitten, Jack 1939-2018 Themes, motives Whitten, Jack 1939-2018 African American art 20th century Exhibitions African American art 21st century Exhibitions Painting, Abstract 20th century Exhibitions Painting, Abstract 21st century Exhibitions African American painters 20th century 21st century African American artists 20th century 21st century Exhibitions Art noir américain 20e siècle Expositions Art noir américain 21e siècle Expositions Peinture abstraite 20e siècle Expositions Peinture abstraite 21e siècle Expositions Peintres noirs américains 20e siècle 21e siècle Artistes noirs américains 20e siècle 21e siècle Expositions Themes, motives African American art Painting, Abstract African American painters African American artists Criticism and interpretation United States 1900-2099 fast ND237.W507 N47 2025 ND237.W6234 A4 2025 709.2 9781633451704 1633451704 POD IG# 250221 20250802185241.9 in00005653909 eng