Ken Ramsay: 'Black Beauty' 1971"Ramsay is a black Jamaican photographer and he died recently. He has a whole body of work about the beauty of posing and Susan Taylor, the subject, is very famous. She was one of the first big black models and she later founded and became the editor of Essence magazine. She's making a statement here about Black Power and women's rights. She shaved her head as if saying: this is a new way of seeing me as a beautiful woman. It emphasizes her eyelashes, her nose, her full lips, the earrings, the curve of her back. The absence of hair — remember, at the time, the afro was so big. She's saying, 'Look at me. Forget about the hair.' It's redefining black beauty."
Written by June Chua. CBC News - Art and Design.
Please click here to read June's complete article.
Posing Beauty in African American Culture runs at the Art Gallery of Hamilton until May 9th.
