Caribbean-British arts have been fighting racism for decades. Precious Adesina explores examples featured in a new exhibition.
In Spirit of the Carnival (1982) by Tam Joseph, a masked performer wearing a fiery yellow ensemble is surrounded by a sea of riot police. The painting depicts a Sensay, a person in a traditional Dominican masquerade costume, with their hands stretched out as an angry dog breaks through the circle the officers have formed around the man. Joseph remembers going to Notting Hill Carnival with his parents growing up; the place being filled with friends, family and people of Caribbean heritage who were looking for something that reminded them of their culture. But it was the tension between carnival-goers and the police that stood out to him, inspiring this composition.
With the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement over the past couple of years, Joseph's work feels as if it could have been made today...Keep reading on BBC Culture.
In Spirit of the Carnival (1982) by Tam Joseph, a masked performer wearing a fiery yellow ensemble is surrounded by a sea of riot police. The painting depicts a Sensay, a person in a traditional Dominican masquerade costume, with their hands stretched out as an angry dog breaks through the circle the officers have formed around the man. Joseph remembers going to Notting Hill Carnival with his parents growing up; the place being filled with friends, family and people of Caribbean heritage who were looking for something that reminded them of their culture. But it was the tension between carnival-goers and the police that stood out to him, inspiring this composition.
With the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement over the past couple of years, Joseph's work feels as if it could have been made today...Keep reading on BBC Culture.