April 4, 2023
Good morning. 🌤️ American photographer Kwame Brathwaite, who popularized the phrase "Black is beautiful," passed away this weekend at age 85. Today we pay tribute to his legacy and highlight his influence on generations of artists, photographers, and curators.
In other stories, researchers decode the Old Masters’ use of egg yolk in their paintings, the Metropolitan Museum of Art releases a fragrance line (for real), and contributor Hindley Wang examines questions of personhood and agency in Louis Vuitton's unnerving Yayoi Kusama robot installation.
There's a lot more, including René Mederos, Josephine Halvorson, Soo Kim, and our handy Opportunities listings.
— Hakim Bishara, Senior Editor
Kwame Brathwaite, “Black Is Beautiful” Photographer, Dies at 85
Throughout his six-decade career, Brathwaite harnessed the power of photography to recalibrate the public understanding of Blackness. | Rhea Nayyar
SPONSORED
The People’s Ball: A Night of Style, Imagination, Freedom, and You!
Not invited to the Met Gala? Not to worry! Brooklyn Public Library’s People’s Ball on Sunday, April 30, 7pm, is a free, inclusive event that eschews elitism and honors the colors, textures, and styles that comprise the city’s urban runway. Come celebrate and be celebrated by your friends and neighbors as you dance, party, and pose.
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IN THE NEWS
Rome's Fontana della Barcaccia was dyed black in Ultima Generazione's latest action. (image courtesy Last Generation)
A new study suggests that Renaissance painters may have known about egg yolk’s ability to protect their works against damage.
The Met introduces a line of six perfumes in a new collaboration with fragrance company Pura.
Italian activist group Ultima Generazione dyed the water of Rome’s Barcaccia Fountain black in protest of the fossil fuel industry.
A joint $62M acquisition between the National Portrait Gallery and the Getty Museum will make “Portrait of Omai” publicly available.
SPONSORED
Latinx Art and American Pasts and Futures
Join the New-York Historical Society for a virtual conversation on efforts to advance Latinx art in American museums with curators Marcela Guerrero, Rodrigo Moura, and E. Carmen Ramos. Learn more.
CARE, TIME, & CHANGE
Josephine Halvorson Paints to Remember
She invites the viewer to contemplate all the ways we mark and live in time, and how much of what we record and keep we will eventually dispose of. | John Yau
An Artist's Gift of Care
Artist Soo Kim's latest series is about the act of arranging, about the impulse to create something with our hands for ourselves and for others. | Alex Paik
René Mederos and Ho Chi Minh’s Sandals
René Mederos’s portrait of the Vietnamese leader calls us to that moment when the politician sat by a riverbank, theorizing and analyzing a world he wanted to change. | Tings Chak
SPONSORED
Pratt’s 2023 Fine Arts MFA Thesis Exhibition Is On View in Brooklyn
The two-part exhibition features the work of 41 graduating artists across disciplines, including painting, sculpture, printmaking, and integrated practices. Learn more.
MORE ON HYPERALLERGIC
The Objectification of Yayoi Kusama
Louis Vuitton's collaboration with the artist raises questions of autonomy, agency, and objecthood. | Hindley Wang
Opportunities in April 2023
From residencies, fellowships, and workshops to grants, open calls, and commissions, our monthly list of opportunities for artists, writers, and art workers.
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IN OUR STORE
Guerrilla Girls Tote Bag
Use it as a tote or wear it as a mask! For when you need to carry something but also be ready to fight the patriarchy at any moment, this tote by intersectional feminist activist artist group Guerrilla Girls will do the trick.
Check out more ferocious Guerrilla Girls merch!
