July 23, 2017 |
Just in case you are still faffing about how to make the most of your weekend, we’re here to lend a hand. And with that hand, we’re going to point towards Tate Modern, more specifically, the ‘Soul of a Nation’ exhibition that opened there last week – it’s very good. After a week of watching Love Island it’s a good opportunity to well, balance things out a bit. We start at 1963 at the height of the American Civil Rights movement, the exhibition follows the transition from the initial quest for integration, to the development of the Black Power movement, and the subsequent rallying cry for African American pride and unity. This turbulent period of American history is reflected in the vibrant works of Benny Andrew, William T. Williams and Carolyn Mims Lawrence, as well as the murals, photographs, revolutionary clothing designs and music, all of which reflect the intense emotion of the time in differing ways. Seminal works, many of which went unseen for decades, have now been unearthed for this show, at a time in which they still bear an unerring relevancy. The America we know today, the one we consume in never ending quantities, was and continues to be, informed by this incredible period of art. Go feast your eyes on this deeply moving selection of works, you won’t have ever seen anything quite like it.
Soul of a Nation is on at Tate Modern until 22th October 2017
