There have been countless fascinating features focusing on visual artists: Vivian Maier. Perhaps cinematic storytelling naturally comes alive when showcasing particularly vivid photographs. Here comes one more exceptional example, from creator Yemi Bamiro, chronicling the remarkable professional journey of Kwame Brathwaite—a photographer, performer and civil rights advocate who embodied a special artistic-political approach.
In partnership with his sibling Elombe, he pioneered the slogan “Black Is Beautiful” throughout the 1960s by documenting the Harlem models in Harlem: youthful women of color who emerged as the groundbreaking standard for visual appeal, moving beyond conventional grooming practices and the predominant white ideal of female beauty.
The Impact of Three Words
Black Is Beautiful became a transformative rallying cry, an visionary memorable declaration for change. Simply to assert that black people possessed beauty emerged as a empowering influence in culture, social movements and the arts. The photographer became part of the social justice African diaspora movement by photographing the sports icon prior to his legendary Rumble in the Jungle in the seventies.
He became the primary photographer for the band's international performances, and eventually became the resident artist for the legendary cultural institution, assembling an amazing portfolio of African American artists. In collaboration with his sibling, he was the central figure behind bringing the anti-apartheid icon to speak in the community.
Personal Journey
Brathwaite's son the younger Brathwaite is interviewed the their campaign to ensure due acknowledgment for his father's legacy after he was painfully excluded in Washington DC's National Museum of African American History and Culture, opened by the former president in recent years.
The feature also recounts the inexpressibly painful origin of the artist's interest in image making: the disturbing images of the lynching martyr, the adolescent African American tragic figure whose grieving mother defiantly demanded an open coffin so the brutal truth of bigoted brutality would not be concealed.
From Tragedy to Empowerment
Through this representation of horror, the visionary found a type of transformative realization that guided him toward visual representations of beauty. His images were eloquent of community pride and frequently not overtly political: he developed a new visual language of strength through which activist groups could unite.
It is an inspiring record of creative genius that persists in resonate decades later.