Exhibition : Soul Of A Nation (second visit)

So this was my second visit to Soul Of A Nation before it comes to a close later this month, why you may ask? The first time I visited the exhibition it had not long been open, so it was full of people getting early reviews and just those in general who were buzzing to see such a vast collection. Over its duration we have seen some good reviews, having its fair share of notable musicians and actors who visited making the buzz even greater from Jay Z to Will Smith. Also with the current events in America it made the exhibition seem even more important than ever, evoking the question how much progression has really been made?

Being emptier I got the time and space to take everything in the second time around, standing back, crowd free, to see pieces such as American People Series #20: Die, 1967 by  Faith Ringold , Frank Bowling Texas Louise 1971 in all their glory. As I explained in the previous post, the oppression and barbaric acts towards black people in America are revisited from symbolic photography and paintings, to actual newspaper cuttings attached to artwork with headlines reading ‘Lynched after refusing to dance on white’s command’. These harsh reminders of America’s dirty past with racism and slavery enable you to understand the emotion and resilience poured into other pieces which symbolise positivity and self belief, resilience and pride emitted though colour and text.

Moving away from paintings I was actually able to dive into more of the literature and photography this time round which is something you do not want to skim over. You must go and visit before the 22nd October, as you cannot miss such a vast collection of creativity by artists who are forgotten and ignored by the mainstream.