One of the things I’ve missed the most while living through a pandemic is going to art galleries. I am so delighted to be able to see the new and ongoing exhibits at the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) in Boston!
While there’s lots to see at the MFA,I’m highlighting two exhibits that focus on Black culture. However, there are a good number of paintings, sculptures, and art by and about us sprinkled throughout the gallery.
Writing the Future – Basquiat and the Hip Hop Generation
“I’m not a real person, I’m a legend.” -Jean-Michel Basquiat
The Writing the Future – Basquiat and the Hip Hop Generation exhibit focuses on graffiti-style art by Basquiat and its transition from trains and walls to canvas. It’s full of paintings, sculptures, drawings, music, videos, and fashion of Jean-Michel Basquiat who was a graffiti artist turned painter of Haitian and Puerto Rican descent, as well as A-One, ERQ, Fab 5 Freddy, Futura, Keith Haring, Kool Koor, LA2, Lady Pink, Lee Quinones.
While I was excited for this exhibit because my husband is also Haitian and I love immersing myself in art created by folks within the African Diaspora. I also recognize that Jean-Michel Basquiat is not here to benefit from nor tell his story, and it is being told by white museums that wouldn’t even accept his art while he was alive. I wish he was able to experience the world loving his art, but more importantly I wish he was able to profit and live his magnanimous life.
Despite some of my concerns, I thoroughly enjoyed it! It will take about 1-1.5 hours to really see the exhibit. It was so good.
Writing the Future – Basquiat and the Hip Hop Generation
“I’m not a real person, I’m a legend.” -Jean-Michel Basquiat
The Writing the Future – Basquiat and the Hip Hop Generation exhibit focuses on graffiti-style art by Basquiat and its transition from trains and walls to canvas. It’s full of paintings, sculptures, drawings, music, videos, and fashion of Jean-Michel Basquiat who was a graffiti artist turned painter of Haitian and Puerto Rican descent, as well as A-One, ERQ, Fab 5 Freddy, Futura, Keith Haring, Kool Koor, LA2, Lady Pink, Lee Quinones.
While I was excited for this exhibit because my husband is also Haitian and I love immersing myself in art created by folks within the African Diaspora. I also recognize that Jean-Michel Basquiat is not here to benefit from nor tell his story, and it is being told by white museums that wouldn’t even accept his art while he was alive. I wish he was able to experience the world loving his art, but more importantly I wish he was able to profit and live his magnanimous life.
Despite some of my misgivings, I thoroughly enjoyed it! It will take about 1-1.5 hours to really see the exhibit. It was so good.
The Hair Craft Project – Sonya Clark
“Hairdressing is the first art made of fiber.” – Sonya Clark
As a black woman, I was really looking forward to seeing this exhibit , because it highlights the beauty and artistry that is Black women’s hair!! Over the course of Black women’s lives, we experience so much criticism and downright animus towards our natural hair and feel forced to make it conform to what companies and people deem more acceptable. The artist Sonya Clark describes The Hair Craft Project as “more than just fiber art, a textile in itself braiding women’s shared knowledge and labor, tradition, and togetherness.”
This exhibit was so amazing and so special. Representation matters and it felt really good to see myself, my culture, and my hair on display, on a pedestal, particularly when Black women’s hair is such I truly loved it and wish it was larger.
If you live in Boston, MA or will be visiting, I definitely recommend going to check out these exhibits at the MFA! However, I can’t stress to you the importance of getting your tickets in advance. By Thursday or Friday, most, if not all of the “current exhibits” are sold out and only general admission tickets are available if you’re planning to go on a Saturday. The tickets are $32 and includes general admission + Basquiat. All tickets are timed-entry and you have to arrive at the museum at your selected time. You can see Basquiat until July 25th. The Hair Craft Project is on display in “Women Take the Floor.”
