Man Ray, African Art, and the Modernist Lens

Man Ray, African Art, and the Modernist Lens is a groundbreaking study that examines the unique confluence of Modernist photography with the “discovery” of African art by the early twentieth-century avant-garde. Featuring more than seventy photographs by Man Ray—some never previously reproduced—this book reveals a little-known chapter in the life of the celebrated artist. Meticulously researched and compellingly presented, Man Ray, African Art, and the Modernist Lens and the exhibition it accompanies raise thought-provoking questions about how photographs of African objects have shaped our notions about African art and, in turn, how these images contributed to multiple Modernist viewpoints.

Award: 2010 International Tribal Art Book Award