Edinburgh BHM 2017
I am strongly opposed to the idea that "Black History" is something that can be condensed into a single month; especially for a history that is so vast and rich. However, I feel that any opportunity to publicly discuss "the black experience" and celebrate black culture should be embraced. At the University of Edinburgh where I study, it was great to see various groups organising events to engage with Black History Month this year.
On 2nd October, UofE BME convener Diva Mukherji and ACS President Elizabeth Kwenortey organised a panel talk with myself, Wami Aluko (photographer) and Jyothis "Joe" Padmanabhan (poet) where we broadly discussed Black Artistry and sought to expose black interests, talent and impact on different areas in the arts.
On the 4th of October, I was kindly invited by the UofE History of Art Society to speak on a panel as part of their "Curating the World" series of talks. I spoke alongside Dr Sarah Worden (Curator of African Collections at the National Museum of Scotland) and Dr Lawrence Dristas (UofE School of Social and Political Science.) We discussed the curation of African art and its place in established Art History.
Later that evening, UofE BME held an exhibition at Potterow, featuring photographs from Wami Aluko of young BME students from university. The show also featured some work that can be found on my "paintings" page. Wami's work can be found on www.wa-ko.com.
It was a real pleasure to be involved with all of these events and was extremely rewarding to see such an array of people engage with Black History and Black Art. I really hope that these events will become more commonplace across The University of Edinburgh, as well as in other institutions. Hopefully in the future this will ensure that the black narrative is a story that is no longer ignored.