The Beauty of Blackness: The Revealing Story of Trailblazing Photographer Kwame Brathwaite

There have been many engaging documentaries highlighting image makers: Tish Murtha. Maybe the film medium naturally comes alive when presenting exceptionally powerful visual compositions. Here comes another exceptional case, directed by filmmaker Yemi Bamiro, exploring the remarkable professional journey of Kwame Brathwaite—an artist, artist and African American activist who exemplified a special cultural-activist approach.

Alongside his family member Elombe, he effectively created the slogan “Black Is Beautiful” during the mid-century era by photographing the African American women in the cultural epicenter: youthful African American women who transformed into the transformative archetype for aesthetics, moving beyond typical grooming practices and the established white ideal of femininity.

The Power of Three Words

Black Is Beautiful became a transformative unifying message, an inspired three-word declaration for progress. Merely declaring that people of color were beautiful emerged as a liberating influence in society, politics and creative expression. Brathwaite grew into a key figure in the social justice African diaspora movement by capturing images of the sports icon leading up to his iconic championship fight in that era.

He was appointed the primary image creator for the musical group's continental journey, and subsequently became the official visual chronicler for the historic Apollo theatre, assembling an extraordinary collection of African American artists. Alongside Elombe, he became the driving force behind bringing Nelson Mandela to speak in New York.

Family Legacy

Brathwaite's son Kwame Jr shares the their campaign to achieve appropriate credit for his family heritage after he was painfully ignored in the nation's capital's cultural museum, inaugurated by the former president in this century.

This documentary further reveals the profoundly sorrowful origin of Brathwaite's passion for photography: the shocking images of the lynching martyr, the adolescent civil rights lynching victim whose grieving mother courageously insisted on an uncovered casket so the violent nature of bigoted brutality might not be concealed.

Through Darkness to Hope

Through this vision of violence, the artist found a kind of anti-epiphany that guided him toward visual representations of community. His photographs were eloquent of community pride and frequently nuanced in approach: he developed a innovative iconography of strength around which activist groups could gather.

It is an inspiring chronicle of artistic vision that continues to resonate across generations.