Black History Month – Library of Birmingham

11th October – 20th November 2019
Library of Birmingham

This work on show is a selection of outcomes produced by students and graduates from the Faculty of Arts, Design and Media (ADM) at Birmingham City University (BCU).

Students from the BA (Hons) Illustration course within the School of Visual Communication responded to the theme of Black History Month and produced a range of pieces using hand drawn and digital mark making techniques. Work here describes influential people who have changed the course of history to commentary on immigration, described through the use of colour and line.

BCU Graduate Nyima Jarju submitted a series of photographs which explore the way society attributes beauty to race and how that has set our society’s beauty standards, leading to those who are of darker skin tones being underrepresented. Jarju’s work explores the lack of diversity and representation of black culture in the media, and the effects that it has on colourism. In this series Nyima focuses on photographing Afrocentric features, with the purpose of showing her audience, the beauty in dark skin. These photographs are statements and declarations of cultural pride and identity.

“I want my audience to look at my images and to see the beauty in dark skin. So I have shot my models in a way which emphasises the colour of their skin, making it the focal point of each photograph. My work aspires to combat colourism and have a positive impact on our society, by trying to change the standards of beauty”.

This exhibition is part of ‘National Libraries Week’ at Library of Birmingham.

View more of Nyima’s work

View Nyima's Instagram: @nyimaphoto