17 Sept 2007 - The Black Image: 1500 - 2007

Yesterday, I attended a free screening of "The Black Image: 1500-2007" at the National Portrait Gallery. A very revealing film which showed how the image of African people has been deliberately altered by Europeans to show negativity. In the 15th century African people were portrayed in European art as noble, sophisticated and intelligent. While in Egypt last year we saw many evidents of this. With the rise of Empire these images were thrown out and replaced with demeaning stereotypes which still inform public opinion via children's books and Hollywood movies .

A portion of Bill Cosby's 1968 "Black History: Lost, Stolen, or Strayed" was shown. He discussed how blacks were portrayed in movie produced by white directors and even many times the actors were actually white. These images are many of the images that I have grown up with.

How often do you see an image of a black couple in love or a black family including the father?

How many people know that a black doctor, Daniel Hale Williams, was the first doctor to do open heart surgery?

This analysis of popular and world famous British art, museums and modern media by Moira Stuart, David Dabydeen and Richard Hart was both surprising and disturbing.

What images of black are you seeing?