We Suffer To Remain
National Art Gallery of The Bahamas, 22 March to 29 July 2018
In partnership with the British Council, the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas presents We Suffer to Remain, an exhibition featuring the evocative video installation The Slave's Lament by Scottish artist Graham Fagen in tandem with visual responses by Bahamian artists Sonia Farmer, Anina Major and John Beadle. This collaborative exhibition looks at the historical significance of slavery and its impacts on postcolonial societies today.
Read Movements and Memory, an interview with participating artist Anina Major on her art practice, hauntings and history available on National Art Gallery of The Bahamas’s blog now.
The exhibition is accompanied by an extensive public programme including artist talks, panel discussions, radio broadcasts, an e-publication and a specially curated film-programme. See National Art Gallery of The Bahamas' website for more details.
Public Programme includes:
- 22 March - Opening of We Suffer To Remain at National Art Gallery of The Bahamas
- 23 March - Panel discussion with Sonia Farmer, Anina Major, John Beadle and Graham Fagen introduced by Holly Bynoe, Chief Curator NAGB, and Annalee Davis, British Council
- 26 March - Public Lecture by Graham Fagen at University of The Bahamas
- April - Launch of e-publication featuring newly commissioned texts by Prof Eddie Chambers and Dr Ian Bethell-Bennett
- 17 May - Launch of We Suffer To Remain film programme.
We Suffer To Remain is the third project presented as part of Difficult Conversations, a 2-year programme of cultural exchange organised by the British Council between Scotland and the Caribbean inspired by Graham Fagen’s artwork for the 2015 Venice Biennale The Slave’s Lament.
The Slave’s Lament is a multi-channel video and sound installation re-examining Scotland’s links to the Caribbean through its role in the transatlantic slave trade. The work takes its title from the Robert Burns’ poem of the same name, his only work to empathise with the appalling hurt of the displaced, the trafficked and the enslaved. A beautiful lyric written over 200 years ago, it is a narrative that remains entirely contemporary as we think of current tragedies unfolding on borders and in hinterland locations. Performed by the Scottish Ensemble and Reggae singer Ghetto Priest, Graham Fagen’s work raises questions about cultural influences and historic legacies today.
The first iteration of Difficult Conversations took place in 2015 and comprised of residencies, conversations and exchanges between Scotland and the Caribbean. The second manifestation was We Have Met Before, an exhibition at the National Gallery of Jamaica featuring work by Graham Fagen, Joscelyn Gardener, Ingrid Pollard and Leasho Johnson. We Suffer To Remain brings the project to The Bahamas and will be accompanied by an e-publication available from April 2018. Previous e-publications are available to download on the right of this page. Find out more about the British Council’s work in the Caribbean here.
