VISUAL ESSAY DEFINING THE BLACK AESTHETIC IN AFRICAN AMERICAN INTERIOR DECORATION IN THE HOME ENVIRONMENT THROUGH ART Jacqueline Carmichael, MFA , Howard University, USA ABSTRACT This visual essay presents initial evidence for an on-going research study, which explores influ- ences from American, African, and African Diaspora art that have shaped the development of African American domestic interior decoration and design. It examines the dominant stylistic tra- ditions such as social practices, forms, colors, and beliefs to define the Black aesthetic in which African Americans create homemaking. Grounded Theory analyzes the role of memory, territori- ality, displacement, and placemaking to create meaningful spaces—visual representation dis- played in the form of photographic images of traditional and modern art obtained through historical archives that depict “African American” homemaking as a cultural repository. INTRODUCTION As an interior design instructor at a historically Black college and university, I seek to create an inclusive design pedagogy, which goes beyond traditional philosophies in European interior design. The lack of exposure to Black aesthetics places all students of all diverse cultures, Black and non-Black alike, at a disadvantage. All students must be open to an array of design episte- mologies, including the Black expressive with its strong culture of the Black aesthetic, to encour- age more inclusivity in their design practice that has been thus far absent. To garner a sense of accomplishment, many African American students emulate Western aesthetic traditions through assimilation and tend to discount any innate, integrative, and improvisational model of design creativity and spatial practice. This research project aims to catalyze and expand theoretical cul- tural studies’ discourse specific to the Black aesthetic in African American residential interiors. This research used Grounded Theory to investigate and conduct the content analysis and was guided by two questions: • Due to the lack of historical attestation of African American homemaking practices, how does using art as a repository illustrate the relationships between human representa- tion, household possession, and create meaning through the African American experience? • How do paintings present the evidential cultural history, spatial practices utilizing the role of memory, territoriality (alongside social traditions), and cultural constructs pro- mote the Black aesthetics of residential interiors and the development of African Ameri- can homemaking practices over time? Grounded Theory, founded by Dr. Barney Glaser and Dr. Anselm Strauss, focuses on generating theoretical ideas inductively derived from the data of the phenomena rather than having prior ideas or preconceived notions while applying codes to the categorized data. 1 The aim is to dis- cover the social psychological processes at play. This study reviews African American imagery from archival photos, paintings from the mid-eighteenth century to present day exhibitions to assess the artistic data, and note the design implementation frequencies found to create home and place. This grounded research is useful in establishing qualitative data, and valuable JOURNAL OF INTERIOR DESIGN 1 © 2019 Interior Design Educators Council, Journal of Interior Design