Kwame Brathwaite, Black is Beautiful

Kwame Brathwaite played a major role in popularizing the slogan "Black is Beautiful" in the 1960s. He co-founded the African Jazz-Art Society & Studios (AJASS), which helped to promote an autonomous and activist Black aesthetic. Brathwaite notably used photography to represent the Black body in a free and positive way, celebrating skin color and African American cultural identity, heavily influenced by African American music, particularly jazz, soul, and later funk.

©Kwame Brathwaite