Jul 25, 20224 min read

What is the Relevance of Contemporary Black Art Right now?

With the latest movement for social equality and the emancipation of minorities, it is now the time for Black Art to shine: Being it produced in Africa, USA, Europe, Latin America or the UK…and anywhere in which the Black minority is either a conspicuous or a relevant part of the population. Digital technology allows contemporary Black artists or artwork focussing on Black culture from anywhere in the Planet to reach new audiences at a global level.

For centuries Europe was the centre of innovation, followed by America and Asia. Latin American art went through a golden age in the 1990 and early 2000s, but especially in London, it caught less attention in terms of Museum exhibitions and collections from the late 2000s onward. With Black art coming to the fore, Latin American art production with Black culture as central theme is going through a new momentum.

With the latest movement for social equality and the emancipation of minorities, it is now the time for Black Art to shine: Being it produced in Africa, USA, Europe, Latin America or the UK…and anywhere in which the Black minority is either a conspicuous or a relevant part of the population. Digital technology allows contemporary Black artists or artwork focussing on Black culture from anywhere in the Planet to reach new audiences at a global level.

With new and renovated museums, galleries, and special events happening around the world, the time is more than right to renew the pastime of taking in-depth looks at the vast number of Black, African art and Afro art available to us. And in 2022, museums outside the UK have stand out in terms of organising incredibly interesting exhibitions focussing on Black Art…here are the highlights!

A relaxed chat with the creators and collaborators of the project "Brasil de Nações". Who they are, what their careers and contributions to Brazilian culture in Salamanca have been like... A bit of art, music and literature in an event in which Kalinca Costa Soderlund, the Founder of Arriere-Garde, Claudia Albuquerque the Head of Brasil de Nações, Nelson Caron, Alex Criado, and Juan Figueroa will participate.

Faith Ringgold: American People – New Museum

The New Museum in New York has a longstanding history with Ringgold and is taking advantage of it. The prestigious exhibition hosted up to June 2022 the largest retrospective of Faith Ringgold’s work, incorporating a range of her iconic artworks, including soft sculptures and her large-scale, figurative murals which delineate racial and gender divisions in 1960s USA with an astute poignancy.

The spectrum of Ringgold’s quilt work on display culminated in an autobiographical depiction of historical events experienced by the artist. This included the Harlem Renaissance, and her experiences as an African-American woman, mother and artist, living through the interlacing societal phases of emancipation and protest against socio-political hierarchies. The exhibition collated a diverse range of scholarly input, taking a retrospective look at sources readily available and newly created contributions, by a range of curators and writers from across the generations, including Lucy Lippard, LeRonn Books and Tschabalala Self.

Jean-Michel Basquiat at The Broad, Los Angeles

One of the world’s leading collections of post-war and contemporary art, The Broad is home to an unparalleled collection of pieces by Jean-Michel Basquiat and all 13 of them are were on display until April 2022, some for the first time ever, in an expansive installation of the late artist’s work.

While digital tours allowed virtual access to the works in the throes of the Covid-19 pandemic, the museum’s reopening in May 2021 means the extremely valuable and important artwork by one of America’s prominent Black artists can be taken in without a screen. “Wicker” (1984) is one of three works by Basquiat that are on view for the first time at The Broad. Basquiat’s art is both a reflection on the legacy of slavery and colonialism and a celebration of the histories of Black culture and everyday traditions of Black life.

Black Cowboys: An American Story at The Witte Museum, San Antonio

The oldest museum in Texas, Witte Museum, in early 2022, was the host to “Black Cowboys: An American Story”, an exhibition that explores the little-known history of Black people in the Wild West and provides a view of legendary cowboys and a more diverse portrait of the American West.

The exhibition transported visitors through time to meet real Black cowboys and examine their significant impact on American History, through artefacts, photographs and documents depicting the work and skills of Black cowboys. The role of Black cowboys evolved over the 20th century as they used the skills they learned on the trail to own their own ranches, serve as lawmen, ride in rodeos, become singers and artists. Today, the lives and legacies of Black cowboys have inspired new generations to explore the past through music, film, fashion and design.