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The Arts Intel Report

An Infinity of Traces

Mar 18 – May 29, 2021

The Black Lives Matter protests have prompted renewed attention to race and belonging around the world. But in the U.K., the nation’s past imperialism has bred particular antipathy to the Black presence, a dynamic that is now under scrutiny. With this hostility in mind, a group of Black British artists have created film works, sound installations, paintings, and textiles that project positive messages of community, self-care, and solidarity. The title is drawn from Antonio Gramsci’s texts, which refer to cultural identity as “an infinity of traces.” Much of the work is newly commissioned for the show, and nods to the formative years of John Akomfrah, the Black British artist whose practice is focused on post-colonialism and migrant diasporas. —E.C.

Jade Montserrat, “Bananas” © Jade Montserrat. Courtesy the artist.