*Soul of a Nation* celebrates the work of Black American artists in the two decades after 1963. During this period - when the dreams of the Civil Rights Movement were articulated, and when calls for Black Power were first heard - artists had to tackle profound questions. Was there a 'Black art' or a 'Black aesthetic'? Should an artist create legible images or make abstract work? Was a choice to be made between addressing a Black audience or a 'universal' one? Where to exhibit their art? How to improvise with new materials and new art forms? This lavishly illustrated publication looks at the wide range of responses to these issues. It documents over two hundred artworks, some never previously published - from painting, sculpture and photography to film and performance - by over sixty artists working both individually and within groups such as Spiral, AfriCOBRA and Kamoigne. It features artists based in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, Oakland and Washington, DC. In addition to thought-provoking explora