Black History Month Belgium x Please Add Color
presents 2 group shows : ASSEMBLY (An Assembly of Years in Arts)
curated by Kevin Kotahunyi
LOCATIONS:
- Ballon Rouge, Brussels
March 5 - April 2, 2022
- Wilde Zee, Antwerp
March 18 - 27, 2022
ARTISTS: Amat De La Gueye; Anthony Ngoya; Bayunga Kia Leuka; Benjamin Mengistu Navet; Carl Knight Hultin; David Katshiunga; Deniz Pasha; Dion Rosina; Emilia Chinwe Brys; Eugenie Boon; Gilles Njaheut Valer; Hedy Tjin; Inès Eshun; Joseph Munyao Mutuku; Kenan Vanel Lamiel; Kenneth James; Khalil Joseph; Lisa Uchechi ljeoma; Marc Martha; Nokukhanya Langa; Pol Oliver; Samuel Lemba; Shamisa Debroey; Wes Mapes; Zoè Nkwuge
Black History Month (BHM) is an annual celebration (during the month of March) of the resilience of the black community in the present and the past. It is an attempt to transform the way in which we represent the past and the present through conversations, exchange moments, lectures, film, debate, performances and exhibitions. Through a people's history/history from below (the past told from the perspective of everyday people instead of leaders) we strive to make history more honest/truthful and inclusive, so more about all of us, regardless of our socio-economic, ethnic or cultural backgrounds. The ultimate motivation is to demonstrate the importance of conserving and promoting cultural diversity and the right to culture for everyone in our society.
Kevin Kotahunyi founded the artistic and curatorial platform PLEASE ADD COLOR in May 2019. When he entered the art industry as an artist in 2018, he discovered that only 1% of visual art students in Antwerp turned out to be black. Proper guidance for these aspiring artists was also lacking. The broader ethos is one of collaboration, accessibility, progress, and collective support. There seems to be a great need for critical thinking and understanding what perspectives and solutions this new ethos in art can breed. Kotahunyi has been appointed curator for the Black History Month Belgium exhibition in March 2022 where a selection of artists with sub-Saharan roots will merge in a group exhibition in Antwerp and Brussels.
Ballon Rouge and PAC began talking of collaboration in early 2021 with a shared interest in promoting BIPOC artists in Belgium. As the curator for BHM Belgium’s artistic programme, Kevin Kotahunyi was invited by Ballon Rouge to take over their space in Brussels to coincide with BHM as well as with his exhibition plans in Antwerp, in order to facilitate a more expansive program across the country’s two art capitals.