OPEN CALL: visual interpretations of ‘the power of assembly’
Écrit par: FOMU
January 26, 2022
Black History Month Belgium and FOMU - Fotomuseum Antwerp are looking for your visual interpretations of ‘the power of assembly’
For the upcoming fifth edition of BHM, we are organising an open air exhibition in Antwerp. This open call is for anyone who captured moments of this year’s BHM theme ‘the power of assembly’. This concept entails the following:
Documenting the different ways Black people in Belgium have gathered together throughout the years and acted in concert to raise awareness, call into question, and explore new ways of thinking, acting, being, creating, exploring, and caring.
Coming together for friendship, worship, play, sports, learning, commerce, protest, governing, mourning, healing, or celebration is fundamental. The Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 and 2021 and the protests against endemic racism in 2020 have brought new attention to our desire and need to assemble. Groups suddenly coming together in large numbers can be a source of hope. By asserting that we are still existing and taking up space, assembling is an expressive action and a politically significant event that can happen wordlessly in the course of any gathering. An assembly is not the act of gathering people. An assembly represents the essence of the people who have gathered and the synthesis of their knowledge and commitments. #bhmassembly
For this open call, we are looking for 10 visual representations of this year’s BHM theme. Did you capture any images that portray ‘the power of assembly’ (by taking pictures during a ceremony, wedding, party, gathering, funeral, etc.)? Send us your image(s) where you think the (in)formal gatherings that symbolise the assembly/ies of Black people in Belgium are represented.
Submit your images by Friday 18/02 to the following email address: antwerp@blackhistorymonth.be
Our team will reach out to the winner on Monday 21/02.
Good luck!
About the first exhibition (2019):
During the second edition of BHM, a few Black artists had the chance to showcase their pictures in the entrance hall of FOMU. The theme of this edition was ‘Black art: the way to freedom’. People were asked to share their images and/or videos answering the following question: What does freedom mean to you as Afro-Belgian? Watch a few testimonies here.
About FOMU
FOMU – Fotomuseum Antwerp FOMU is one of the most prestigious and leading museums of photography in Europe. FOMU presents several temporary exhibitions by nationally and internationally renowned photographers and has an extensive collection of photo images, equipment and photo books.
Since the second edition of BHMB, FOMU has been one of the core partners. More information on www.fomu.be