We have witnessed numerous compelling films highlighting image makers: Martin Parr. Perhaps cinematic storytelling naturally comes alive when presenting exceptionally powerful photographs. Here arrives one more exceptional instance, by creator Yemi Bamiro, exploring the extraordinary career of Kwame Brathwaite—a creative force, musician and African American activist who embodied a special artistic-political perspective.
Alongside his sibling Elombe, he effectively created the phrase “Black Is Beautiful” in the 1960s by photographing the African American women in New York: emerging women of color who transformed into the sensational standard for aesthetics, rejecting traditional grooming practices and the established Eurocentric standard of female beauty.
The Power of a Simple Phrase
This powerful statement became a transformative call to action, an inspired concise declaration for progress. Simply stating that black people possessed beauty emerged as a liberating force in culture, social movements and creative expression. The photographer became integral to the Black power African diaspora cause by capturing images of the sports icon before his iconic championship fight in that era.
He was appointed the exclusive visual documentarian for the musical group's continental journey, and eventually was named the house photographer for the legendary cultural institution, creating an extraordinary collection of musical pioneers. In collaboration with his brother, he was the key organizer behind securing Nelson Mandela to speak in Harlem.
Personal Journey
His son his namesake is interviewed the family's quest to achieve due acknowledgment for his father's legacy after he was unjustly overlooked in the prestigious National Museum of African American History and Culture, opened by Barack Obama in 2016.
The feature also recounts the deeply tragic genesis of the photographer's passion for photography: the shocking images of the young victim, the teenage African American lynching victim whose mourning family member boldly demanded an public viewing so the horrific reality of racial hatred might not be hidden.
Amidst Sorrow to Beauty
From this image of violence, the artist found a type of transformative realization that guided him toward visual representations of community. His work were eloquent of empowering beauty and often nuanced in approach: he established a fresh visual language of empowerment upon which political movements could mobilize.
This represents an inspiring chronicle of creative genius that persists in empower decades later.
