MS01.01.03.B02.F10.005

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ment ^[in the visual arts] that is worthy of study and further investigation as an important aspect of
American culture.

There were times when it was evident that the knowledge which a slave
artisan had about the crafts of his native land was not readily adaptable to
[crossed out: American] colonial use without his undergoing a period of retraining and apprenticeship.
Slavemasters were deliberate in their methods of seeking ways of destroying any
form of African culture that may have contributed toward group communication.
Thus, many art forms were destroyed in this iconoclastic process [crossed out: or they are forsaken] as
their use was either forbidden by slavemasters [crossed out: or were told that their images
were the] or classified as purveyors of sin and pagan ideals. This severence of ancestral ties [crossed out: by
Blacks] with Africa meant a loss of those traditional forms that had been used at
the core of life in various African societies where art was a vital part of
everyman's lifestyle.

In America, there was no need for the services of the skilled carver ehose
heritage in traditional African society called for the making of ceremonial masks
and othe sculptural works that went hand in hand, in an integrated manner, with
art, dance and music. A well trained carpenter could be [crossed out: substituted] called upon to perform
[crossed out: such] house decoration, but this was not the same honor as being called upon to create a mask in the service the chief of a village. Yet, the developing middle class, as their wealth increased,
became more and more dependent on the craftmanship of persons of African [crossed out: descent.] ancestry.
to enhance the quality of life in the Colonial experience.
One such account of this trend is given by a German physican who toured the
United States in 1783 during which time he observed:

"...the gentlemen in the country have among their Negroes as
the Russian nobility among the serfs, the most necessary handicrafts-
men, cobblers, tailors, carpenters, smiths, and the like whose work