Hello, my name is Patrick Ranesses, and I am a Gallery Attendant at the museum. I will be reading the A Global Perspective section text for Working Together: The Photographers of the Kamoinge Workshop.

Kamoinge photographer Louis Draper noted that a significant factor in the formation of the Workshop was “the emerging African consciousness within us.” During the 1960s and 70s, many Kamoinge members traveled to African countries that had recently gained independence from colonial rule, and to other international locations with significant African diaspora communities. Some worked outside the United States on films or on assignment for magazines, and in their off-hours, made time for their own art. Members such as Anthony Barboza, Draper, and Ming Smith depicted people engaged in the ebb and flow of everyday life in Senegal. Shawn Walker’s photographs from Cuba capture moments of collective activity and pause among workers and children, while Herb Robinson’s images of Jamaica portray an intimate connection to his environment. The global reach of Kamoinge members’ travel expanded their sense of an international Black community, a worldview they brought back to their work in the United States.

Back to the Audio Exhibition