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VISUAL CULTURE 

The social movement Black Lives Matter was made possible by a visual culture. Complete with it’s own hashtag, #BlackLivesMatters began, in great part, because of the filming and sharing of graphic video and images, specifically of violence and police brutality against African American men.

Visual culture both impacts and shapes societal ideologies and realities. In today’s culture sharing life visually is a daily activity, and the proliferation of technology allows events of all types to be captured. This same technology is being used to shape and promote activism, including #BlackLivesMatter. Some argue without the videos of police brutality Black Lives Matter may not exist.

 Without these recordings, that were shared widely on social media channels, society would not have readily accepted the racism that still exists in our world. Due to the proliferation of smart phones, so much of life’s everyday events from the mundane to the extraordinary are captured and shared. This same technology is being used to shape and promote activism, including #BlackLivesMatters. Of course with every social movement comes controversy and differing opinions, but it is through visual culture that we can explore the realities and opinions of  racism, violence and social media – and in real time.

 "Rooted in the experiences of Black people in this country who actively resist our dehumanization, #BlackLivesMatter is a call to action and a response to the virulent anti-Black racism that permeates our society." - BLM

             Police Brutality           

Trayvon Martin

Eric Garner

Michael Brown 

Freddie Gray 

On February 26, 2012, in a Sanford, Florida gated community, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was walking home unarmed from the 7-11 with a bag of Skittles and an iced tea, when he was shot and killed by George Zimmerman a neighbourhood watch volunteer. Many believe the Black Lives Matter movement was a result of the Martin’s murder, racial profiling by Zimmerman and then Zimmerman’s subsequent acquittal for the crime. This video is a compilation of footage and details of the altercation and murder.

Eric Garner, father of six died on July 17, 2014. Video of the incident was shared around the world. In the initial video, Garner can be seen in a chokehold by New York police, he is unable to breath and was gasping for air. Garner’s words “I can’t breathe” — became a protest chant and hashtag. The NBC news coverage shows how Black Lives Matter protestor’s concerns were also being covered by mainstream media as the unjust events were shared around the globe in a visual culture.

The lifeless body of Michael Brown, 18, was captured by cell phones and then shared. His body lay in the street as those who captured it commented, tension and frustrations grew quickly. Police say he was arrested for robbery and there was a struggle. Brown allegedly told the officer his hands were up and not to shoot. That turned into a chant at peaceful and violent rallies that followed in Ferguson, Missouri where racial tensions have been an issue for decades, chanting “hands up, don’t shoot.”

Freddie Gray was 25-year-old when he was arrested by Baltimore, Maryland police on April 12, 2015 for allegedly carrying an illegal knife. This video was taken by a witness and a friend of Gray’s. He details the arrest, what he saw and how Gray was treated by police before he was placed in the police van. It is believed once in the van Gray was not secured properly, and officers purposely did this and drove erratically in order to rough him up. This rough ride practice in slang is referred to as a "nickel ride." Gary was hospitalized and died a few days later.

 

                BLM ARTISTS                 

To represent Black Lives Matter through the visual culture it is important to show the various videos that were streamed and shared to rase awareness to the police brutality, but also expose the significant pieces of art work that have arose through the movement. The artistic interpretations of the social movement; artist who support black lives matter, artwork that promotes the representation of black people and the visual components that #BlackLivesMatter choose to display on their various online visual platforms. 

María María Acha-Kutscher

from Lima- Perú, is described

as a “feminist visual artist”. Many of her

works focus on the depictions of marked

historical battles and protests for women’s rights. Several of her works depict the racial horrors and realities that have been recorded in the past 10 years. Her work is often “photographs from press and witnesses [turned] into drawings that [she] prints onto large format tarps for exhibitions in public spaces”. 

In Kehinde Wiley’s paintings we

see a wide representation of

“black and brown” individuals often

times in an urban setting. Wiley’s work

primarily focuses on “[quoting] historical sources and position[s] young black men within the field of power.” He describes how painful it was to realize “the absence of other black images”. Thus his strong need to not only expose this reality but change it - while allowing black individuals to feel empowered. Wiley recently began to 

include more women in his paintings to explore the ideals of gender. 

Mickalene Thomas is a

New York-based contemporary

artist who’s artwork revolves

around the depiction of women’s

beauty. Her subjects are primarily black

women shown in seemingly  leisurely poses

yet often hold a great deal of agency, as well as a strong gaze with the viewer. Her best known work is “composed of rhinestones, acrylic and enamel”.

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