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YINKA SHONIBARE MBE @ THE BROOKLYN MUSEUM

Yesterday, New York was hot, hot, hot. With the seemingly incessant rain we've been getting all season, I was looking forward to a day of abundant sunshine. I grabbed a book and planned on planting myself in front of the Brooklyn Museum for the afternoon (I have the pleasure of living around the corner from it).

I decided to stop in. The first major exhibition of British artist, Yinka Shonibare MBE, is on display right now. I was unfamiliar with his work, so I was looking forward to it.

Yinka was born to Nigerian parents in London. When he turned three, the family moved to Nigeria. In his work, he explores current African identity, as a result of European colonialism of Africa, primarily between the 1880s and the First World War – an era dubbed the "Scramble for Africa".

This subject is especially pertinent to me, as I've been reading Eduardo Galeano's Mirrors (which is the best, most interesting, most informative, best, best book ever...a must-read), which delves into this topic at length.

The piece above is called "Scramble for Africa", 2003. It consists of 14 life-size fiberglass mannequins, fourteen chairs, a table and Dutch wax printed cotton. It highlights the exploration and territorial expansion of England into Africa during the late 19th century. European powers essentially "carved up" Africa, "an act that was formalized at the Berlin Conference of 1884-85".

Their clothing is typical 19th century Victorian dress, but ironically made of Dutch Wax Fabric – which is actually the formal name for what generally referred to as "African print". A lesser-known fact is that these fabrics were originally mass produced in the Netherlands and England and then marketed to buyers in West Africa.

His headless characters (he has said, "It amused me to explore the possibility of bringing back the guillotine in the late 1990s...") at first seemed slightly comical and joyful to me...perhaps due to the explosion of pattern and color. Then I took a second glance and realized his message.

I'm SO glad I stopped in. The show was FANtastic. If you're in NY, or will be visiting, you MUST see this show! It's up until September 20.

Take a look at more pieces from the show here.