A British modern art museum commissioned an artist to respond to a mural that has been banned from public view since 2020 because of its caricature depictions of Black and Chinese people. The artist said the people need to see it.
Keith Piper (a Black man) defended Rex Whistler’s “The Expedition in Pursuit of Rare Meats - a wrap around mural that covered the walls of Tate Britain’s restaurant. The piece features caricatures of enslaved Black children being pulled by chains attached to carriages or held by white people, a naked Black woman perched in a tree, as well as offensive images of Chinese people. The piece was commissioned back in 1926, according to The Guardian.
However, the debate over whether it should be displayed to the public has resurfaced once again as the Tate prepares to put it back on display on Tuesday March 12. The museum then called on Piper, founder of the BLK Art Group and a prominent voice of the British Black Arts movement in the 80s, to comment on the piece.
Here’s what Piper had to say via The Guaurdian:
He said: “I know there is an argument among young people now that these images re-traumatize, but I think we either look or forget. We are very good at forgetting nowadays and things that are out of sight go out of mind. To keep a clear sense of history we need to see these things.
“We need to recognise the importance throughout black struggles, the importance of difficult images. If we go back to the struggle against apartheid, the very graphic and traumatising video of George Floyd during Black Lives Matter, his life coming out of his body. And without that very problematic image it is questionable whether or not without that the movement would have had the same momentum, same with the civil rights images.”
But the artist, who was a member of the Blk Art Group, argues that in the age of artificial intelligence, we need to see real historical images – however difficult – more than ever. “Having the historical artefact itself is becoming more important because of how much is fabricated by AI,” said Piper.
The mural has been shut off since 2020 because of the pandemic. However, concerns about the piece have been raised by the public since 2013. Piper never denied the piece was racist but asserted that its problematic elements are necessary in a time when history is being erased and watered down.
I mean, isn’t that what we’re fighting against in the U.S.? The very facts of American history are being sifted of anything related to racism and prejudice for the sake of protecting white people from white guilt. The anti-woke battle is starting in the classrooms and libraries but wait until they get to the art museums...