Black Venus Exhibition

Earlier this month, Nev, Chloe, and I checked out the art exhibition, Black Venus, at the Somerset House in London. London has some of the best museums in the world and I love how so many diverse artists are getting exposure that is honestly overdue. Black Venus explores the complex historical representation of black womanhood in visual art from Sarah Baartman, Khoikhoi woman from South Africa who was tricked into travelling to England and later France exhibited as a freak show, in the 19th century to the contemporary artists whose work has redressed misogynoir narratives, recasting black women as subjects rather than objects. I spent two hours exploring and absorbing the paintings and photographs. There were also quotes painted throughout the exhibition to express the challenges that black women continue to face. The one quote that stuck out to me was from Lorraine O’Grady. She stated that “[t]he creation of a black feminist aesthetic must challenge dominant culture’s discourse of the black body [as] grotesque and articulate a black liberation discourse on the black body [as] beautiful. As a black woman I have struggled with fully expressing myself with the fear that what I say may be misunderstood and held against me. It is probably why I gravitate to the arts and books because I wish that I could express myself the same way that artists and authors are able to raise themes in a thought provoking way that will promote courageous conversations. This was definitely a great exhibition and I am glad that I saw it before it ended on Sunday, 24th September 2023. My mission is to promote art because it plays a crucial role in society.