History has seen many fascinating films highlighting photographers: Martin Parr. Maybe cinematic storytelling truly excels when presenting particularly vivid still images. Here we have a new outstanding instance, by writer-director Yemi Bamiro, documenting the extraordinary career of Kwame Brathwaite—a creative force, musician and social justice champion who exemplified a unique artistic-political vision.
Alongside his sibling Elombe, he effectively created the slogan “Black Is Beautiful” in the 1960s by photographing the Grandassa Models in Harlem: emerging Black women who emerged as the transformative template for visual appeal, rejecting traditional cosmetic products and the usual Eurocentric model of womanhood.
The Impact of Three Words
The iconic phrase transformed into a transformative rallying cry, an brilliant concise declaration for progress. Merely to assert that black people were beautiful became a transformative influence in art, politics and culture. Brathwaite grew into part of the social justice global Black cause by photographing Muhammad Ali leading up to his iconic championship fight in 1974.
He served as the exclusive visual documentarian for the band's African tour, and later was named the official visual chronicler for the legendary Harlem venue, assembling an incredible collection of black musicians. In collaboration with his sibling, he emerged as the driving force behind bringing the anti-apartheid icon to appear in New York.
Family Legacy
The photographer's offspring his namesake recounts the family's mission to secure due acknowledgment for his family heritage after he was painfully ignored in the nation's capital's cultural museum, established by the former president in this century.
The film additionally explores the profoundly sorrowful inspiration of Brathwaite's interest in image making: the shocking photographs of Emmett Till, the teenage African American lynching victim whose bereaved parent defiantly insisted on an uncovered casket so the brutal truth of racial hatred could not be concealed.
Through Darkness to Beauty
From this image of horror, the artist encountered a type of transformative realization that directed him toward visual representations of aspiration. His work beautifully expressed empowering beauty and typically not overtly political: he established a fresh iconography of pride through which activist groups could unite.
The documentary stands as an captivating record of artistic vision that continues to inspire decades later.
