Get Up, Stand Up! Generations of Black Creative Pioneers, Somerset House, London
Celebrate 50 years of Black creativity in Britain at the major new Somerset House exhibition Get Up! Stand Up!
Aubrey Williams (Guyana), Maya Series Cenote IV (c) Aubrey Williams Estate
This summer Somerset House celebrates Black creative pioneers from post-war to present day in a new multi-disciplinary exhibition, spanning art, film, photography, music, literature, design and fashion.
The exhibition opens with the work of radical Windrush filmmaker Horace Ové and his creative contemporaries, before tracing more than half a century of collective history.
In this multi-sensory exhibition curated by the son of Horace Ové, artist Zak Ové, more than 100 multi-disciplinary artists exploring the Black experience and influence in Britain unite to showcase work together for the first time.
A Protest, A Celebration, A Mixed Message, 2018 . (c) Rhea Storr
New commissions will hang alongside existing works from personal archives rarely seen before in public. The curators are keen to emphasise, though, that all of the work on display has been chosen for its great cultural impact on Britain and beyond. A collection of artists will create work especially for this exhibition, with confirmed highlights to include new work by Somerset House Studio residents Jenn Nkiru and Larry Achiampong, and an original soundtrack by Trinidadian DJ and producer Jillionaire.
Jillionaire said: 'Caribbean people have always been storytellers, whether through film, dance, visual arts, music or literature [...] We now have the unique opportunity of bringing the past and present together in a single frame, allowing us not just to compare and contrast the work of father and son, but to walk the bridge that connects their work'.
The exhibition opens with the work of radical Windrush filmmaker Horace Ové and his creative contemporaries, before tracing more than half a century of collective history.
In this multi-sensory exhibition curated by the son of Horace Ové, artist Zak Ové, more than 100 multi-disciplinary artists exploring the Black experience and influence in Britain unite to showcase work together for the first time.
A Protest, A Celebration, A Mixed Message, 2018 . (c) Rhea Storr
New commissions will hang alongside existing works from personal archives rarely seen before in public. The curators are keen to emphasise, though, that all of the work on display has been chosen for its great cultural impact on Britain and beyond. A collection of artists will create work especially for this exhibition, with confirmed highlights to include new work by Somerset House Studio residents Jenn Nkiru and Larry Achiampong, and an original soundtrack by Trinidadian DJ and producer Jillionaire.
Jillionaire said: 'Caribbean people have always been storytellers, whether through film, dance, visual arts, music or literature [...] We now have the unique opportunity of bringing the past and present together in a single frame, allowing us not just to compare and contrast the work of father and son, but to walk the bridge that connects their work'.
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| What | Get Up, Stand Up! Generations of Black Creative Pioneers, Somerset House, London |
| Where | Somerset House, Strand, London, WC2R 1LA | MAP |
| Nearest tube | Temple (underground) |
| When |
12 Jun 19 – 15 Sep 19, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM |
| Price | £12.50 |
| Website | Please click here for more information |