AN exhibition examining Scotland’s role in the structures of white supremacy is to be held by celebrated Barbadian-Scottish artist Alberta Whittle.
“Alberta Whittle: create dangerously” aims to pull apart the belief that racism and police brutality is just an English or American problem.
Opening at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art on April 1, this will be the largest exploration of the artist’s works to date.
It will mark the return of two major works to Scotland which gained critical acclaim at the 59th Venice Biennale in 2022 – the extraordinary tapestry, “Entanglement is more than blood” (2022) created in collaboration with Dovecot Studios and Whittle’s thought-provoking film, Lagareh – The Last Born (2022).
Shot on location in Scotland, London and Barbados and featuring footage from Sierra Leone and Venice, this film weaves together contrasting stories of individual acts of resistance against racist violence.
Lagareh – The Last Born will play continuously throughout the day with start times made available in the gallery and on the National Galleries of Scotland website.
There will also be a room dedicated to the themes of rest, care, connection and belonging in Whittle’s practice, where visitors can slow down and pause. Here there will be a bespoke quilt hanging on the wall, crafted by a group of women from North Edinburgh.
Inspired by Whittle’s practice and use of textiles in her work, the quilt is being made by a sewing group run by Project Esperanza, a charity dedicated to supporting women of African heritage, as well as women from other culturally diverse backgrounds.
Facilitated by textile artist Francia Boakye, the quilt draws upon the makers’ experiences, weaving together their stories and their journeys as migrants to Scotland. Whittle said it would be “an exhibition about hope”.
“It is about the hope we can nurture within ourselves but also the hope that we can have difficult conversations about the harm caused by colonialism, the Transatlantic trade in enslaved people and the climate crisis,” she said.
“The exhibition presents an opportunity for self-reflection and to think about the types of power we hold in the world and how we can use it compassionately.”
Lucy Askew, chief curator of modern and contemporary art at the National Galleries of Scotland, said: “This hugely important exhibition devoted to the work of one of the leading artists working in Scotland today is underpinned by Alberta’s deep generosity and warmth.
“Alberta speaks of fundamental truths about the violence and injustices of our past – ‘the burden of proof’ – and the legacy of systemic racism which permeates through our society today, asking us to confront this with her.
"With compassion and care, she holds and guides us, encouraging us to pause, to breathe and to think differently.”
