Catalogue relating to an exhibition, 1988
Published by: Oldham Art Gallery, Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool
Year published: 1988
Number of pages: 32

Catalogue for Black Art: Plotting the Course, a touring exhibition held at Oldham Art Gallery, October 22 - December 3, 1988, Wolverhampton Art Gallery, December 10 1988 - January 31, 1989 and the Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool, February 25 - April 1 1989. Selected by Eddie Chambers and organised in collaboration with the three venues, the exhibition featured the work of 27 artists from African, Asian and Caribbean backgrounds, all living in the UK. 

This was an exhibition of works by Black artists, who were invited to submit work in a variety of media that explored their feelings and thoughts about the Black artist’s position within the social structure and culture of Britain, and about the effects of racism. Black Art: Plotting the Course included works by more established artists, such as John Lyons (born in 1933) and Errol Lloyd (born in 1943), as well as art students and younger practitioners. The works included paintings, sculpture and multi-media pieces. The images selected sought to offer a distinct view of the range of work being produced by Black artists in Britain in the late 1980s.

From the Preface: “This exhibition, for which this catalogue has been published, was curated by Eddie Chambers, in collaboration with the three originating venues, Oldham Art Gallery, Wolverhampton Art Gallery and the Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool. Each gallery has jointly supported the exhibition in terms of both finance and organisation; the venture has also been funded by the Arts Council of Great Britain under its Special Arts Projects scheme. 

It was selected in two parts; an open entry section - for which any artist of African or Asian origin was eligible; and an invited section. Forty-three artists applied and nine were invited: From this group of fifty-two, thirty-six were visited in their studios and twenty-seven were finally selected. A substantial number of these artists live outside of London, and many are students or recent graduates.

This 32 page catalogue accompanied the exhibition.

Contents as follows:

Preface
Introduction
Catalogue essay: Plotting the Course
Artists’ Statements
References (Endnotes for catalogue essay)
African and Asian Visual Arts Resources Material
Catalogue of work in the exhibition

This was an extensively illustrated catalogue,with monochrome reproductions. The cover featured a colour illustration of a work by Gurminder Sikand, Woman and Elephant