In The Black Fantastic at the Hayward Gallery review

Nick Cave, Soundsuit, 2014, Image: Hayward Gallery, 2022, MTotoe

The spectacular show curated by Ekow Ehsan unites 11 artists from the African continent as they address racial injustice through myth, Afrofuturism and fantasy.

Upon entry you are greeted by giant chains cascading all the way down from the double height ceiling. From a far they look like chains but as you get a closer look you quickly realise they are hands and forearms clasping onto one another helping each other.The showstopper piece by artist Nick Cave captures unity as well as struggle for the African race which he names "Chain Reaction'.

 Throughout the first quarter of the exhibition there is a range of sculptures and paintings. A sculpture of the male body covered in colourful sequins and an astromatic helmet for a head is another one of Cave’s masterpieces named 'Soundsuit'.

The sculpture piece is made of an assortment of recycled materials, with crocheted pot-holders. Showcasing to the view that beauty can be seen in most things. Costumes begun in response to the beating of Rodney King by Los Angeles police in 1991.

Another stand out piece from the show is what I like to call the ‘red room’ The Liberian British artist Lina Iris Viktor is showing a series of self-portraits in which she appears, regal, masked and hieratic, as the Libyan Sibyl, a prophetess from Greek mythology who foretold the horrors of thetransatlantic slave trade.

It is a startling combination of theatrical performance, captured on camera, and then fused with gouache, pastel, raffia, gems and gold leaf to create sumptuous hybrid paintings. Viktor’s work is the chosen piece for the show and as a viewer seeing this in person – the artwork although striking does not do it any justice in person seeing the selection of masterpieces showcasing incredible detail one cannot help but stare so closely at the paintings.

 The room itself screams elegance in the way it is laid out even though it is bold and colourful. The sculptures centred in the room give the symmetry of hope and importance as the light catches the gold façade.The show continues downstairs showcasing again glistening objects covered in jewels and recyclable materials with men on horses as the centerpiece.

No stone is left unturned, the art on the walls make you think and be intrigued as from far away they look like something and close up there is so much detail to get the bigger picture. The room next showcasing a pyramid structure where a projector is telling a story from Easten Africa about myths and rituals used in particular Egypt.

Upstairs you are greeted with muted tones but by the work of Chris Offilli. The standout piece in his room has to be the Sculpture; it takes up the myth of Odysseus and Calypso. This is also precipitated in the paintings in the ways which show figures in lush embrace and translucent blues,translated to the waters of Trinidad where the artist lives. These are images of ecstatic disorientation, where it is impossible to tell what is sea and what is sky, which way is down, and whether Ofili’s black Odysseus is a captive or willing lover.

The show is beautifully curated by Ekow Eshun to give each artist space to breathe, and to sing, but his judicious selection also allows for echoes and connections throughout. 

Overall, the ultimate connection between all the artists in this show is their overwhelming passion: a force of feeling that translates into vision, music, poetry, ethos and form, and in the most original ways. The context explicit or otherwise, is the narrative of black history.

Words by Patrice Antwi