There have been numerous fascinating films highlighting image makers: Martin Parr. Maybe cinematic storytelling naturally comes alive when presenting exceptionally powerful still images. Today arrives a new outstanding instance, from filmmaker Yemi Bamiro, documenting the impressive life's work of Kwame Brathwaite—an artist, performer and African American activist who represented a unique cultural-activist vision.
In partnership with his sibling Elombe, he virtually invented the phrase “Black Is Beautiful” during the sixties by documenting the African American women in Harlem: emerging Black women who emerged as the transformative archetype for aesthetics, moving beyond conventional beauty standards and the predominant white standard of femininity.
The Influence of a Simple Phrase
Black Is Beautiful transformed into a radical call to action, an brilliant concise declaration for change. Simply to assert that African Americans radiated beauty emerged as a transformative force in culture, activism and the arts. The artist grew into integral to the social justice pan-Africanist movement by photographing the sports icon prior to his legendary Rumble in the Jungle in 1974.
He was appointed the exclusive image creator for the Jackson 5's international performances, and eventually assumed the role of the house photographer for the historic Harlem venue, building an incredible portfolio of musical pioneers. Together with his sibling, he emerged as the central figure behind arranging for Nelson Mandela to appear in New York.
Personal Journey
The photographer's offspring the younger Brathwaite recounts the personal campaign to secure proper recognition for his family heritage after he was painfully overlooked in Washington DC's National Museum of African American History and Culture, opened by Barack Obama in 2016.
This documentary further reveals the profoundly sorrowful origin of Brathwaite's passion for photography: the horrendous pictures of Emmett Till, the teenage civil rights tragic figure whose mourning family member defiantly demanded an uncovered casket so the horrific reality of racial hatred could not be concealed.
Amidst Sorrow to Empowerment
Through this vision of tragedy, Brathwaite encountered a type of transformative realization that directed him toward visual representations of community. His work powerfully conveyed celebratory strength and frequently not overtly political: he developed a new symbolic representation of strength through which social causes could unite.
The documentary stands as an captivating chronicle of cultural impact that still empower decades later.
