Renowned ‘Black is Beautiful’ Movement Photographer, Kwame Brathwaite, Passes Away at 85
Our awesome company is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Kwame Brathwaite, a pioneering activist and photographer who played a major role in shaping the aesthetics of the “Black is Beautiful” movement. Brathwaite’s work has recently experienced a resurgence of interest from curators, historians, and collectors, and his first major retrospective, organized by the Aperture Foundation, received critical acclaim during its debut in 2019.
Born in 1938 to Barbadian immigrants, Brathwaite’s passion for photography was ignited by two powerful moments. The first was when he encountered David Jackson’s haunting photograph of Emmett Till in 1955. The second was when he witnessed a young man taking photos in a jazz club without a flash, sparking his imagination. Using a Hasselblad medium-format camera, Brathwaite mastered the art of working with limited light, resulting in visually captivating imagery. Additionally, he developed a darkroom technique that emphasized the beauty of Black skin in his photographs.
Throughout the 1950s and ’60s, Brathwaite captured iconic portraits of jazz legends such as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Thelonious Monk. He aimed to capture the essence and mood of their performances, creating a visual narrative through his photographs.
In the early 1960s, Brathwaite, along with the rest of the African Jazz Arts Society and Studios (AJASS), actively challenged Eurocentric beauty standards. They introduced the concept of the Grandassa Models, young Black women whom Brathwaite photographed to celebrate and accentuate their unique features. This led to the creation of the fashion show “Naturally ’62,” which ran until 1992. In 1966, Brathwaite married his wife Sikolo, a Grandassa Model he had met while taking her portrait on the street.
During the 1970s, Brathwaite expanded his focus to other genres of popular Black music. He documented the Jackson Five’s tour in Africa in 1974 and photographed the historic “Rumble in the Jungle” boxing match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. He also captured images of music legends such as Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, and Bob Marley.
Brathwaite’s dedication to the “Black is Beautiful” ethos remained unwavering throughout his career. In recent years, he continued to work on photography commissions and joined the roster of Philip Martin Gallery in Los Angeles. Even as his health declined, he remained committed to his craft.
We are honored to remember the legacy of Kwame Brathwaite, and his retrospective is currently traveling to the Blanton Museum of Art in Austin, Texas, and the Art Institute of Chicago. His powerful and influential work will continue to inspire future generations.