THE FASHION MAP
  • CALENDAR
    • ADD EVENT
  • BLOG

BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL BY KWAME BRATHWAITE

11/4/2020

0 Comments

 
BY: LOTTA YANONG

 The Fashion Map captured photos of the Black Is Beautiful: The Photography of Kwame Brathwaite exhibition at the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco earlier this year. Featuring over forty photographs of black women and men with natural hair and clothes that reclaimed their African roots, Black Is Beautiful: The Photography of Kwame Brathwaite is the first-ever major exhibition dedicated to this key figure of the second Harlem Renaissance.
​
Kwame Brathwaite: Black Is Beautiful by Kwame Brathwaite  (Photographer), Tanisha C. Ford (Contributor), Deborah Willis (Contributor)

​From MOAD: Inspired by the writings of activist and black nationalist Marcus Garvey, Brathwaite (b. 1938) combined his political vision with the medium of photography to effect social change. Along with his brother Elombe Brath (1936–2014), Brathwaite founded two organizations that were instrumental in realizing his vision: African Jazz-Art Society and Studios, a collective of artists, playwrights, designers, and dancers, in 1956; and Grandassa Models, a modeling group for black women, in 1962. Working with AJASS and Grandassa Models, Brathwaite organized fashion shows featuring clothing designed by the models themselves, created stunning portraits of jazz luminaries, and captured behind-the-scenes photographs of the black arts community.

During an era when segregation still prevailed across the United States, Brathwaite’s work challenged mainstream beauty standards that excluded women of color. His photographs celebrated black beauty and instilled a sense of pride throughout the community. Black Is Beautiful: The Photography of Kwame Brathwaite demonstrates how the medium of photography is an essential cultural tool in the dissemination of new visual paradigms and political ideas.


​​Exhibition organized by Aperture, New York and Kwame S. Brathwaite.
PHOTOS: THE FASHION MAP
​

Booking.com
Picture
Kwame Brathwaite, Self-portrait, African Jazz-Art Society & Studios (AJASS), Harlem, ca. 1964; from Kwame Brathwaite: Black Is Beautiful (Aperture, 2019)
About the Artist
Born in Brooklyn and raised in the Bronx, New York, Brathwaite spent most of his adult life in and around New York City. In the late 1950s, Brathwaite and his brother Elombe Brath became active in the African Nationalist Pioneer Movement led by Carlos Cooks. At the same time, the brothers regularly produced and promoted concerts and art shows at such venues as Club 845 in the Bronx and Small’s Paradise in Harlem, while Brathwaite photographed the events.

Throughout the 1960s, Brathwaite contributed photography to leading black publications such as the Amsterdam News, City Sun, and Daily Challenge. By the 1970s, Brathwaite was a leading concert photographer, helping to shape the images of major celebrities including Stevie Wonder, Bob Marley, James Brown, and Muhammad Ali. Brathwaite wrote about and photographed such landmark events as the Motown Revue at the Apollo in 1963, WattStax ’72 in 1972, the Jackson 5’s first trip to Africa in 1974, and the Festival in Zaire in 1974.

​Today Brathwaite resides in New York City. He is married to Sikolo Brathwaite, a former Grandassa model whom he met through their work together. She continues to advocate for the empowerment of black women today. Their son, Kwame S. Brathwaite, is currently the director of the Kwame Brathwaite Archive in Pasadena, California. Brathwaite is represented by Philip Martin Gallery in Culver City, California.

​Black Is Beautiful: The Photography of Kwame Brathwaite will be opening next year at the Blanton Museum of Art (Austin, Texas) from June 27 - Sept 19, 2021.
​
Picture

​Subscribe for our newsletters, fashion travel guides, events, and fashion exhibition updates. 
​

Generic_468x60

​More from THE FASHION MAP:
Picture
Fashion Book Review
Fashion book review by Maegan J
 of The Chiffon Trenches: A Memoir (André Leon Talley).
READ MORE

Picture
Join Our Facebook Community
​​We created this free private group to foster closer connections with our community. We share information on fashion exhibitions, events, and industry news. Join the fashion conversation!
JOIN US!

Picture
Levi Strauss: A History of American Style
Levi Strauss: A History of American Style is currently on view at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, California. Featuring over 250 items from the Levi Strauss & Co. Archives, this exhibition represents the largest public display of the company's archival materials ever assembled.  Check out The Fashion Map's photo gallery of the exhibition!
READ MORE
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Categories

    All
    Asian Fashion
    Black Fashion
    Chicago Fashion
    Fashion Book
    Fashion Exhibition
    Fashion Market
    Fashion Travel Guide
    Gift Guide
    Giveaway Contest
    Minimalist Fashion
    Photo Gallery
    Sustainable Fashion

    Archives

    February 2022
    November 2021
    September 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    November 2020
    September 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019

    RSS Feed

Picture
MORE FASHION, PLEASE.

​Subscribe to our newsletter.

TESTIMONIALS
BLOG
FAVES
MEDIA GALLERY
​CONTACT
TERMS OF USE
AFFILIATE DISCLOSURE
THE FASHION MAP © 2022. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • CALENDAR
    • ADD EVENT
  • BLOG