There have been many fascinating films highlighting photographers: Vivian Maier. Perhaps the film medium truly excels when showcasing remarkably striking visual compositions. Here comes another remarkable case, by filmmaker Yemi Bamiro, exploring the remarkable career of Kwame Brathwaite—a creative force, artist and social justice champion who represented a distinct cultural-activist perspective.
In partnership with his sibling Elombe, he pioneered the expression “Black Is Beautiful” during the mid-century era by documenting the Grandassa Models in the cultural epicenter: emerging African American women who emerged as the sensational standard for beauty, abandoning conventional grooming practices and the predominant Eurocentric model of womanhood.
The Impact of a Simple Phrase
Black Is Beautiful transformed into a radical unifying message, an brilliant concise prose poem for change. Merely stating that African Americans were beautiful emerged as a empowering power in society, politics and the arts. The photographer grew into integral to the Black power global Black movement by photographing the sports icon prior to his historic championship fight in that era.
He served as the official image creator for the Jackson 5's African tour, and eventually assumed the role of the house photographer for the legendary Apollo theatre, building an incredible archive of African American artists. In collaboration with his brother, he became the central figure behind arranging for the anti-apartheid icon to speak in the community.
Personal Journey
His son his namesake shares the their mission to achieve due acknowledgment for his father's legacy after he was unjustly excluded in Washington DC's National Museum of African American History and Culture, inaugurated by Barack Obama in 2016.
The feature further reveals the deeply tragic genesis of the photographer's interest in visual storytelling: the horrendous pictures of Emmett Till, the teenage Black murder victim whose mourning family member boldly insisted on an public viewing so the violent nature of racial hatred could not be concealed.
Through Darkness to Hope
In this representation of horror, Brathwaite discovered a type of profound understanding that led him toward images of aspiration. His photographs beautifully expressed celebratory strength and typically not overtly political: he curated a innovative iconography of strength through which social causes could mobilize.
It is an captivating record of cultural impact that still inspire through the years.
