Inspired by Gustav Klimt’s ‘golden phase’ and the religious icons of medieval Europe, US photographer Tawny Chatmon reimagines Black identity by upturning art history
Main image: Black beauty and strength … Not Your Blackamoor, from the series The Restoration, 2025
Wed 15 Oct 2025 08.00 CEST
Unstitching the Past, Becoming the Future, from the series The Restoration, 2023–25
A new exhibition explores and reimagines Black identity through classical art history. Photographic artist Tawny Chatmon uses stylistic languages drawn from historical decorative motifs and potent African American cultural markers to create lush and strikingly powerful portraits that challenge racism and erasure. Tawny Chatmon: Sanctuaries of Truth, Dissolution of Lies is at National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, USA until 8 March 2026. All artworks by Tawny Chatmon
