There have been many engaging features highlighting visual artists: Martin Parr. Maybe the documentary format particularly shines when displaying remarkably striking still images. Now arrives one more remarkable instance, by filmmaker Yemi Bamiro, chronicling the impressive professional journey of Kwame Brathwaite—an artist, performer and social justice champion who embodied a unique cultural-activist vision.
Together with his sibling Elombe, he pioneered the expression “Black Is Beautiful” throughout the 1960s by capturing the Grandassa Models in the cultural epicenter: emerging African American women who transformed into the transformative standard for aesthetics, rejecting traditional grooming practices and the established white standard of womanhood.
The Influence of a Simple Phrase
The iconic phrase transformed into a powerful unifying message, an brilliant three-word manifesto for change. Merely declaring that black people radiated beauty became a transformative power in culture, politics and the arts. The artist grew into part of the social justice pan-Africanist struggle by capturing images of the legendary boxer leading up to his iconic Zaire bout in that era.
He was appointed the official photographer for the band's African tour, and eventually was named the house photographer for the legendary Harlem venue, creating an extraordinary archive of musical pioneers. In collaboration with his brother, he emerged as the driving force behind bringing Nelson Mandela to address the public in Harlem.
Historical Recognition
The photographer's offspring his namesake is interviewed the personal quest to achieve proper recognition for his parent's achievements after he was unjustly overlooked in the nation's capital's Smithsonian institution, established by the political leader in this century.
This documentary additionally explores the profoundly sorrowful inspiration of Brathwaite's interest in visual storytelling: the horrendous pictures of the young victim, the teenage civil rights lynching victim whose bereaved parent defiantly insisted on an open coffin so the brutal truth of bigoted brutality would not be concealed.
From Tragedy to Hope
Through this image of violence, Brathwaite discovered a form of transformative realization that led him toward photographs of community. His photographs were eloquent of community pride and frequently not overtly political: he curated a innovative visual language of strength upon which political movements could gather.
The documentary stands as an exhilarating chronicle of artistic vision that still resonate through the years.
