Say My Name – Signature African Art and Ava DuVernay

Selma director, Ava DuVernay has teamed up with Mayfair Gallery Signature African Art for a new exhibition bringing the Black Lives Matter movement into the heart of London’s art world.

Watch Ava DuVernay’s interview on Millennium Extra.

Millennium TV visit the launch event in London featuring an interview with Ava DuVernay, who also created, wrote, produced and directed the Emmy Award-winning limited series ‘When They See Us’.

Watch the interview on Millennium Extra.

The exhibition features paintings and sculptures by 13 African artists and honours George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, whose killings at the hands of police in the US inspired the BLM movement.

Say My Name resonates with the Black Lives Matter movement through new works which celebrate influential figures and moments in Black history in the UK and the USA. The exhibitions coincide with Black History Month in both countries.

Say My Name pays tribute to Black activists who have fought for equality such as Angela Davis, whose portrait is rendered by Dennis Osakue, known for his large-scale paintings that bear a photographic quality. Wangari Maathai, Kenyan activist and the first African woman to win the Nobel Prize, is depicted by contemporary artist Taiye Erewele.

Say My Name is on view in London at Signature African Art from 27 October – 28 November 2020. There will also be an exhibition in Los Angeles in February 2021.

There are more inspiring Arts films at Millennium Extra Arts.