Something All Our Own: The Grant Hill Collection of African American Art

Since 1990, Grant Hill has thrilled sports fans with his artistry on the basketball court, first as an All-American player at Duke University and then as a six-time NBA All-Star for the Detroit Pistons and the Orlando Magic. During these years, Hill has amassed a collection of art by African Americans that he now shares with the public through this book, which accompanies a traveling exhibition.
The forty-six pieces documented here include thirteen works that span the career of the great Romare Bearden, from his 1941 gouache painting Serenade to the important collages of the 1980s. Hill's fascination with artists' depiction of women is represented in Elizabeth Catlett's lithographs, many of them from the 1992 series "For My People," and her sculptures in stone, bronze, and onyx. In addition to these two giants of twentieth-century art, the Hill Collection features pieces by Phoebe Beasley, Arthello Beck Jr., John Biggers, Malcolm Brown, John Coleman, Edward Jackson, and Hughie Lee Smith.
Hill began collecting art in the early 1990s after learning from his parents to appreciate artworks not only as objects of beauty but as expressions of heritage and culture. According to the internationally known curator Alvia J. Wardlaw, he is part of an emerging group of young African American collectors who have "raised the bar for others." Hill writes, "Getting to know yourself means understanding your background and appreciating those who have come before you. My father has a saying he uses in speeches: 'To be ignorant of your past is to remain a boy. 'The interest in my heritage as an African American is reflected in this collection."
Something All Our Own features Wardlaw's essay on the history of African American collecting. It also features articles about Bearden and Catlett by the scholars Elizabeth Alexander and Beverly Guy-Sheftall and reflections about Hill by the historian John Hope Franklin, Duke's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, and the sportswriter William C. Rhoden. Hill and his father, the NFL great Calvin Hill, contribute a dialogue that explores their motivations for collecting art.
At the heart of the book are the exquisite color photographs of the forty-six artworks included in the exhibition, with commentary by Wardlaw and by Hill himself.
As a star athlete, Grant Hill is well aware that African Americans who excel in sports and entertainment are more broadly recognized than their counterparts in artistic fields. He strives to inspire young people to explore their heritage and broaden their concept of excellence by learning more about African American art. By sharing his artworks with collectors and fans, Hill reminds us that while the jump shot is ephemeral, art is enduring.

Grant Hill was raised in a household filled with artworks collected by his parents, Calvin and Janet Hill. Born in Dallas, he attended Duke University, where he received a B.A. in history and starred on the Duke Blue Devils basketball team. He played on two national championship teams at Duke, where he was a three-time All-American and won the Henry Iba Corinthian Award as the nation's top defensive player in 1993. In 1994, Hill was selected in the first round of the NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons, and the next year he was cowinner of rookie-of-the-year honors. A six-time NBA All-Star, he was selected to play on the 1996 U.S. Olympic gold medal-winning basketball team. Hill now lives in Orlando with his wife Tamia, a singer, and their daughter Myla, and he plays for the Orlando Magic. Hill gives time to organizations including Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels, and the Special Olympics, and through the Tamia and Grant Hill Foundation, he and his wife support children's and educational charities.

John Hope Franklin is James B. Duke Professor Emeritus of History at Duke University and author of the landmark book From Slavery to Freedom: A History of African Americans.

Mike Krzyzewski, Duke University's beloved "Coach K," has led his Blue Devil basketball teams to three national championships--two of them during the Grant Hill years.

Calvin Hill, a 1969 graduate of Yale University, was a star running back for the Dallas Cowboys, playing in two Super Bowls. He is currently a consultant to the team.

William C. Rhoden has been a sportswriter for the New York Times since 1981.

Alvia J. Wardlaw is director and curator of the University Museum at Texas Southern University in Houston and curator of modern and contemporary art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. She has numerous exhibitions to her credit, including "Our New Day Begun: African American Artists Entering the Millennium" and the highly acclaimed "The Quilts of Gee's Bends."

Elizabeth Alexander is an acclaimed poet and the author of three books of poetry, including The Venus Hottentot. She is associate professor (adjunct) of African American studies at Yale University.

Beverly Guy-Sheftall is director of the Women's Research and Resource Center at Spelman College, where she is Anna Julia Cooper Professor of Women's Studies. She coedited the first anthology of Black women's literature, Sturdy Black Bridges: Visions of Black Women in Literature.

Grant Hill was raised in a household filled with artworks collected by his parents, Calvin and Janet Hill. Born in Dallas, he attended Duke University, where he received a B.A. in history and starred on the Duke Blue Devils basketball team. He played on two national championship teams at Duke, where he was a three-time All-American and won the Henry Iba Corinthian Award as the nation's top defensive player in 1993. In 1994, Hill was selected in the first round of the NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons, and the next year he was cowinner of rookie-of-the-year honors. A six-time NBA All-Star, he was selected to play on the 1996 U.S. Olympic gold medal-winning basketball team. Hill now lives in Orlando with his wife Tamia, a singer, and their daughter Myla, and he plays for the Orlando Magic. Hill gives time to organizations including Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels, and the Special Olympics, and through the Tamia and Grant Hill Foundation, he and his wife support children's and educational charities.

John Hope Franklin is James B. Duke Professor Emeritus of History at Duke University and author of the landmark book From Slavery to Freedom: A History of African Americans.

Mike Krzyzewski, Duke University's beloved "Coach K," has led his Blue Devil basketball teams to three national championships--two of them during the Grant