Nottingham’s first ever Black History mural. Blog by Skinder Hundal, CEO of NAE and Executive Producer of ‘Pathways’.
God poured tears of rain all week, the artists painted, drenched in love soldiering on, as Britain flooded, and on the 5th day… a thunder bolt of sunshine shone and laid the pathway for a fearless future in the Global Quarter #HysonGreen – the centre of the world…
Nottingham’s first ever Black History mural was unveiled by Deputy Leader Graham Chapman on 17 June 2016 at 6.45pm and prior to this, heartfelt speeches and a poem by Panya Banjoko were delivered by the commissioners, executive producers, engagement and artistic team involved on the project, offering much passion, protest and future intent.
The mural captures and represents black history in Nottingham through the experiences of young people working with a professional team of artists. There has been a dream team of specialist involved in its making. The Pathways mural has been painted by Tim Weedon with portraits of historical black figures of Nottingham by Andrew Wright and the ideas have emerged from the young people of Hyson Green Youth Club facilitated by Boseda Olawoye and Maxine Davies. Nottingham Black Archive played an active role in sharing archive material through Panya Banjoka and Ioney Smallhorne . Melanie Kidd and Jeff Baker, from New Art Exchange, offered curatorial and technical installation advice. Professor Zoe Trodd from C3R, the Centre for Research in Race and Rights, University of Nottingham has played the role of commissioner and offered a warm hand of pragmatic action with intense scholarship, supported by her colleagues from C3R especially Kate Donnington. The Pathways Mural project will feature at the Utopia festival launched byJeremy Deller and Fraser Muggeridge, at Somerset House on 24 June 2016.
The collaboration between young people, artists, politicians, archivists, scholars, curators and the public domain has produced a beautiful ray of hope where the sun will always shine in Hyson Green.
Pathways offers unity instigating and spreading knowledge and wisdom, together with a fearless intent but respectful of the larger force of nature as we hurtle through space.
Welcome to Nottingham’s Global Quarter.
Skinder Hundal – CEO of NAE and Executive Producer of ‘Pathways’
