Julian Richings Instagram – Antelope by Samson Kambula.
Trafalgar Square, London.
Three plinths at the corners of Trafalgar Square have statues of British kings and generals. But the funds ran out for a fourth plinth, so for over 150 years the NW corner has had an empty pedestal.
Now, each year funds are in place for temporary installations commissioned for The Fourth Plinth Project.
This year, Antelope is a dedication to John Chilembwe who led a rebellion against Colonial forces in modern day Malawi.
It’s a reproduction of a photo taken in 1914 in Nyasaland at the opening of Chilembwe’s new church, together with European missionary John Chorley.
He’s wearing a hat, defying the colonial rule forbidding Africans wearing hats in front of white people. His image is doubled in size, revealing the hidden narratives of underrepresented peoples in the history of the British Empire in Africa and beyond. | Posted on 25/May/2023 21:04:24
