His "black dog"--that was how Winston Churchill referred to his own depression. Today, individuals with feelings of sadness and irritability are encouraged to "talk to your doctor." These have become buzz words in the aggressive promotion of wonder-drug cures since 1997, when the Food and Drug Administration changed its guidelines for the marketing of prescription pharmaceuticals.


Black Dogs and Blue Words analyzes the rhetoric surrounding depression. Kimberly K. Emmons maintains that the techniques and language of depression marketing strategies--vague words such as "worry," "irritability," and "loss of interest"--target women and young girls and encourage self-diagnosis and self-medication. Further, depression narratives and other texts encode a series of gendered messages about health and illness.


As depression and other forms of mental illness move from the medical-professional sphere into that of the consumer-public, the boundary at which distress becomes disease grows ever more encompassing, the need for remediation and treatment increasingly warranted. Black Dogs and Blue Words demonstrates the need for rhetorical reading strategies as one response to these expanding and gendered illness definitions.

It is not an uncommon burden but rather a choice that Black women artists embrace creating art as a socio-political strategy to save themselves and their communities. Tanisha M. Jackson analyzes visual and personal narratives, historical archives, and artmaking practices to reveal how Black women artists facilitate wellness through creative expression and cultural knowledge. Delving into historical and contemporary practices, Jackson looks at Black women who use their artwork as acts of resistance, self-expression, and holistic wellness. Jackson’s multidisciplinary approach blends art history, Black studies, and personal narratives to examine the ways that the art ecosystems created by these women foster resilience and empowerment. Their dramatic stories underscore the transformative power of art in cultivating activism and mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being but also provide a framework for understanding how art can be a vital component of self-care and communal wellness. A meticulous portrait and inspiring roadmap, Black Women’s Art Ecosystems celebrates Black women’s artistic achievements while revealing how their work creates communities of restoration and mental health.