Art historian Richard J. Powell is preparing a new book that explores how color functions not only as a visual element, but also as a cultural and emotional language in Black American art. Titled Colorstruck! Painting, Pigment, Affect, the volume is set to arrive this fall from Princeton University Press.
At the center of the book is the idea that pigment can carry meaning beyond aesthetics. Powell examines how painters and viewers respond to color through the lens of identity, perception, and artistic expression. His discussion includes major figures such as Jacob Lawrence, Alma Thomas, Lorna Simpson, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Nina Chanel Abney, alongside William H. Johnson's vivid and expressive work.
The book also revisits the term colorstruck, a phrase tied to colorism and social preference, while expanding it into a broader reflection on how artists use intense palettes to shape atmosphere, tension, and meaning. By pairing archival material with artworks, Powell highlights the dynamic relationship between creation and interpretation.
Colorstruck! Painting, Pigment, Affect is scheduled for publication in September. The project adds a timely perspective to ongoing conversations about art, representation, and the power of color in visual culture. In the years ahead, such scholarship may help broaden how audiences read art and understand the language of color.
