Tyler Mitchell (American, born 1995), Untitled (Hijab Couture), New York, 2019. Photo print, 40 x 30 in. © Tyler Mitchell. Courtesy of Aperture.
Tyler Mitchell (American, born 1995), Untitled (Hijab Couture), New York, 2019. Photo print, 40 x 30 in. © Tyler Mitchell. Courtesy of Aperture.
Tyler Mitchell (American, born 1995), Untitled (Hijab Couture), New York, 2019.
Photo print, 40 x 30 in. © Tyler Mitchell. Courtesy of Aperture.
Jamal Nxedlana (South African, born 1985), Johannesburg, 2019. Photo print, 30 x 20 in. © Jamal Nxedlana. Courtesy of Aperture.
Jamal Nxedlana (South African, born 1985), Johannesburg, 2019.
Photo print, 30 x 20 in. © Jamal Nxedlana. Courtesy of Aperture.
Campbell Addy (British, born 1993), Untitled, New York, 2018. Photo print, 24 x 19 in. © Campbell Addy. Courtesy of Aperture.
Campbell Addy (British, born 1993), Untitled, New York, 2018.
Photo print, 24 x 19 in. © Campbell Addy. Courtesy of Aperture.
Ruth Ossai (British Nigerian, 1991), London, 2017. Photo print, 24 x 16 in. © Ruth Ossai. Courtesy of Aperture.
Ruth Ossai (British Nigerian, 1991), London, 2017.
Photo print, 24 x 16 in. © Ruth Ossai. Courtesy of Aperture.
Dana Scruggs (American), Nyadhour, Elevated, Death Valley, California, 2018. Photo print, 30 x 40 in. © Dana Scruggs. Courtesy of Aperture.
Dana Scruggs (American), Nyadhour, Elevated, Death Valley, California, 2018.
Photo print, 30 x 40 in. © Dana Scruggs. Courtesy of Aperture.
Stephen Tayo (Nigerian, born 1994), Lagos, Nigeria, 2019. Photo print, 36 x 27 in. © Stephen Tayo. Courtesy of Aperture.
Stephen Tayo (Nigerian, born 1994), Lagos, Nigeria, 2019.
Photo print, 36 x 27 in. © Stephen Tayo. Courtesy of Aperture.
Arielle Bobb-Willis (American, born 1994), Union City, New Jersey, 2018. Photo print, 30 x 20 in. © Arielle Bobb-Willis. Courtesy of Aperture.
Arielle Bobb-Willis (American, born 1994), Union City, New Jersey, 2018.
Photo print, 30 x 20 in. © Arielle Bobb-Willis. Courtesy of Aperture.
Adrienne Raquel (American, born 1990), Gold Finger, New York, 2019. Photo print, 20 x 15 ⅜ in. © Adrienne Raquel. Courtesy of Aperture.
Adrienne Raquel (American, born 1990), Gold Finger, New York, 2019.
Photo print, 20 x 15 ⅜ in. © Adrienne Raquel. Courtesy of Aperture.
Micaiah Carter (American, born 1995), Adeline in Barrettes, 2018. Photo print, 24 x 18 in. © Micaiah Carter. Courtesy of Aperture.
Micaiah Carter (American, born 1995), Adeline in Barrettes, 2018.
Photo print, 24 x 18 in. © Micaiah Carter. Courtesy of Aperture.
Quil Lemons (American, born 1997), New York, 2017. Photo print, 46 x 30 ½ in. © Quil Lemons. Courtesy of Aperture.
Quil Lemons (American, born 1997), New York, 2017.
Photo print, 46 x 30 ½ in. © Quil Lemons. Courtesy of Aperture.

The NEW BLACK VANGUARD

PHOTOGRAPHY between ART and FASHION

May 28 - September 17, 2023

The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion presents artists whose vibrant portraits and conceptual images fuse the genres of art and fashion photography in ways that break down long-established boundaries. Their work has been widely consumed in traditional lifestyle magazines, ad campaigns, and museums, as well as on their individual social-media channels, reinfusing the contemporary visual vocabulary around beauty and the body with new vitality and substance. The images open up conversations around the representation of the Black body and Black lives as subject matter; collectively, they celebrate Black creativity and the cross-pollination between art, fashion, and culture in constructing an image. Seeking to challenge the idea that Blackness is homogenous, the works serve as a form of visual activism. It’s a perspective often seen from this loose movement of thriving talents, who are creating photography in vastly different contexts—New York and Johannesburg, Lagos and London. The results—often made in collaboration with Black stylists and fashion designers—present new perspectives on the medium of photography and the notions of race and beauty, gender and power.

Curated by Antwaun Sargent, a renowned writer, editor, and curator based in New York City, this exhibition includes select works from these groundbreaking contemporary photographers: Campbell Addy, Arielle Bobb-Willis, Micaiah Carter, Awol Erizku, Quil Lemons, Namsa Leuba, Renell Medrano, Tyler Mitchell, Jamal Nxedlana, Daniel Obasi, Ruth Ossai, Adrienne Raquel, Dana Scruggs, and Stephen Tayo. A salon wall also features images created by other young Black photographers contributing to this movement while simultaneously proposing a brilliant reenvisioned future.

The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion is organized by Aperture and is curated by Antwaun Sargent.

Aperture Logo

The exhibition is made possible, in part, by Airbnb Magazine.

This exhibition at Sarasota Art Museum is made possible, in part, with generous support from:

Platinum Sponsor
Shari and John Hicks

Silver Sponsor
Ernie Kretzmer and the Kretzmer Family Charitable Foundation
Katherine and Frank Martucci

Installation view of "The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion" at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of "The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion" at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of "The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion" at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of "The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion" at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of "The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion" at Sarasota Art Museum
Installation view of The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion at Sarasota Art Museum

Programs

Large pink playscape on a green lawn with children playing in the foreground

Sarasota Art Museum Announces Installation of New Site-Specific Outdoor Playscape, “Natural Curiosity” 

Sarasota Art Museum of Ringling College of Art and Design (SAM) is pleased
to announce the addition of a new playscape located on the Museum’s Great Lawn. Titled “Natural Curiosity,” this piece will serve as part art installation, part outdoor classroom, inspiring creativity, social connection and well-being for locals, tourists and school students alike.
Designed by Brooklyn, New York-based, award-winning multidisciplinary design studio The
Urban Conga, this inviting, site-specific installation will create a dynamic outdoor respite for Museum visitors, sparking connection with nature and social activity through open-ended play.

Blue Star Museums Program

Sarasota Art Museum is a Blue Star Museum

Sarasota Art Museum of Ringling College of Art and Design (SAM) is pleased to participate in Blue Star Museums, a program that provides free admission to currently serving U.S. military personnel and their families during the summer. The 2026 program will begin on Armed Forces Day, Saturday, May 16, 2026, and end on Labor Day, Monday, September 7, 2026.

Skyway 2027 Logo

Call to Artists Announced for Tampa Bay Area Exhibition ‘Skyway 2027: A Contemporary Collaboration’​

Five regional art museums, the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg; The John and
Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota; Sarasota Art Museum of Ringling College of Art and Design, Sarasota;
the Tampa Museum of Art; and the University of South Florida Contemporary Art Museum, Tampa, are pleased to
announce a call to artists for “Skyway 2027: A Contemporary Collaboration”, the fourth iteration of the exhibition
celebrating the diversity and talent of artistic practices in the Tampa Bay area and beyond.