NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY NPR! From “literary superstar” ( The Boston Globe ) and
Booker Prize finalist Brandon Taylor his “most accomplished novel” ( The New York Times ): the
story of a gay Black painter navigating the worlds of art desire and creativity New York
simmers with heat and unrest as Wyeth a painter finds himself at an impasse in his own work.
After attending a dubious show put on by a collective of careerist artists he retreats to a
bar in the West Village where he meets Keating a former seminarian. Over the long summer as
the two get to know each another they talk and argue about God sex and art. Meanwhile at
his job working for an art restorer Wyeth begins to investigate the life and career of a
forgotten minor black artist. His search yields potential answers to questions that Wyeth is
only now beginning to ask about what it means to be a black artist making black art amid the
mess and beauty of life itself. As he did so brilliantly in the Booker Prize finalist Real
Life and the bestselling The Late Americans Brandon Taylor brings alive a captivating set of
characters this time at work and at play in the competitive art world. Minor Black Figures is
a vividly etched portrait both sweeping and tender of friendship creativity belief and the
deep connections among them.
