We have witnessed many fascinating documentaries about visual artists: Tish Murtha. Maybe the film medium particularly shines when presenting particularly vivid still images. Today we have one more exceptional instance, by writer-director Yemi Bamiro, chronicling the impressive career of Kwame Brathwaite—a creative force, performer and civil rights advocate who exemplified a special politico-aesthetic approach.
Together with his family member Elombe, he pioneered the slogan “Black Is Beautiful” in the mid-century era by documenting the Grandassa Models in the cultural epicenter: youthful women of color who emerged as the transformative template for visual appeal, moving beyond typical beauty standards and the usual Eurocentric ideal of female beauty.
The Influence of Three Words
This powerful statement evolved into a transformative rallying cry, an visionary three-word declaration for progress. Merely to assert that black people radiated beauty became a empowering power in culture, politics and the arts. The photographer grew into a key figure in the Black power African diaspora struggle by documenting Muhammad Ali leading up to his historic Zaire bout in 1974.
He was appointed the exclusive photographer for the band's continental journey, and subsequently became the resident artist for the historic Apollo theatre, building an incredible collection of black musicians. In collaboration with his sibling, he became the driving force behind bringing the South African leader to speak in New York.
Family Legacy
His son Kwame Jr shares the family's quest to ensure proper recognition for his father's legacy after he was painfully overlooked in Washington DC's Smithsonian institution, opened by the political leader in this century.
The feature also recounts the profoundly sorrowful origin of the photographer's dedication to visual storytelling: the disturbing photographs of the young victim, the young Black lynching victim whose grieving mother defiantly requested an uncovered casket so the horrific reality of racist violence could not be hidden.
Through Darkness to Hope
Through this image of violence, the artist found a kind of profound understanding that led him toward photographs of beauty. His images beautifully expressed community pride and frequently nuanced in approach: he established a innovative iconography of empowerment around which activist groups could gather.
It is an exhilarating testament of creative genius that continues to resonate across generations.
