Essential Information
| Type | Talks and tours |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Date and Times | Wednesday 13 December 2023 | 6pm-8pm |
| Prices | Pay what you can |
How does it feel to see 'yourself' represented - or misrepresented - in museum spaces? Join artist Sharon Walters and special guests for a live in-conversation event as they delve into the National Maritime Museum collections to look at depictions of people of African descent and their significance today.
Writer and curator Ekow Eshun joins Sharon to highlight the power of historic archives in contemporary curatorial practices. The impact and intentions of Eshun’s work will also be discussed. This event will take place in the Lecture Theatre at the National Maritime Museum.
This event is an extension of the 'Seeing Ourselves' podcast, developed by Sharon in collaboration with historians and artists. The project is supported by the National Maritime Museum through the Migration, Heritage and Belonging project.
About the speakers
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Ekow Eshun
Ekow Eshun is Chairman of the Fourth Plinth, overseeing the foremost public art programme in the UK, and the former Director of the Institute of Contemporary Arts, London.
He is the curator of exhibitions including, most recently, In the Black Fantastic at the Hayward Gallery, London, awarded the Association for Art History’s Curatorial Prize for Exhibitions 2023, and author of books including Black Gold of the Sun, shortlisted for the Orwell prize.
Described by The Guardian as a ‘cultural polymath’, he is the writer and presenter of documentaries including the BBC film Dark Matter: A History of the Afrofuture, the Tate Modern film series, Exploring the Black Atlantic, and the BBC Radio 4 series White Mischief. He has contributed to books on artists including Mark Bradford, Kehinde Wiley, Chris Ofili, John Akomfrah and Wangechi Mutu and his writing has appeared in publications including the New York Times, Financial Times, The Guardian and The Observer. He holds an honorary doctorate from London Metropolitan University.
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Sharon Walters
Sharon Walters is a London-based artist with a fine art degree from Central St Martins. Her current series entitled, 'Seeing Ourselves' is a multi-disciplinary project celebrating Black women, their histories and futures. The work encompasses papercuts, collage works, mixed media works and events in collaboration with various organisations.
The intention of her practice is to empower those who are marginalised to take up space, create our own spaces and develop opportunities to be seen, heard and instigate change.
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