Arts Seen T he show opens in 1963 at the height of the American Civil Rights movement and its dreams of integration. It was a dramatic time in American history when artists were motivated to create work that confronted inequality, challenged society and help pave the way to a different future. What followed was not only a shift in civil rights but also more militant calls for Black Power: a rallying cry for African American pride, autonomy and solidarity. The exhibition at the Tate Modern will include vibrant paintings, powerful murals, collage, photography, revolutionary clothing designs and sculptures made with Black hair, melted records, and tights. Some of the work draws on legendary figures from the period, with paintings in homage to political leaders Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and Angela Davis, musician John Coltrane and sporting hero Jack Johnson. Spanning the emergence of Black feminism and including activist posters as well as purely abstract works, the exhibition asks how the concept of Black Art was promoted and sometimes flatly rejected by other artists across the United States. SOUL of a Nation Soul of a Nation 12 July to 22 October Tate Modern Bankside Art Is (Girlfriends Times Two) (1983) by Lorraine O’Grady Black Unity (1968) by Elizabeth Catlett Icon for My Man Superman (Superman Never Saved any Black People) (1969) by Barkley L. Henricks © C A T L E T T M O R A F A M I L Y T R U S T © L O R R A I N E O ’ G R A D Y © B A R K L E Y L . H E N R I C K S | C U L T U R E | 28 THE RIVER MAGAZINE | Summer 2017