Poetry, prose, archival documents, and an array of contemporary visual artists are summoned together in Nottingham Black Archive’s (NBA) fifth publication, Seeds of Resistance, edited by poet and cultural historian Dr Panya Banjoko. The title for the anthology, taken from a poster produced by the Nottingham based collective “Turbo Blk Arts” of the 1980s, was designed to promote an evening of poetry and song dedicated to
the memory of Malcom X.
15 years of mining the Black presence in Nottingham and reclaiming narratives, hidden, ignored, and otherwise under-explored if not for the work of NBA, grace the pages and adds texture to Nottingham’s creative scene. Twenty artists contribute to proudly to mark the work of a decade and a half since founding of NBA in 2009 and include academic and artist Keith Piper who studied at Trent Polytechnic in the early 1980s. Piper’s thought-provoking foreword provides a bridge between the past and the present, while artist Kim Thompson’s artwork adorns the front cover.
A selection of artwork from ceramicist Madge Spencer – the first woman to graduate in ceramics from the Jamaica School of Art and Craft, and who moved to England in 1967, establishing herself for many years in Nottingham, is an acknowledgement to the connections Black artists forged with those outside of the city. Spencer is the link that connects Nottingham to the seminal London based arts collective the Caribbean Artist Movement (CAM) founded by Dr Kamau Brathwaite, John La Rose, and Andrew Salkey in 1966. Spencer held the position of regional secretary between 1967-1968, for CAM’s only regional branch.
Seeds of Resistance is an eclectic mix of artists including Paula D. Pontes, born during the colonial era in Angola, contributing her decorative “Three Wise Monkeys” ceramics. Guianese fine artist Morag Williams explores the spiritual and mystical experiences within an Afro dimensional space, and South Asian artist Neelum Aftab, whose work on diasporic figures explore journeys to the unknown, offers up a new narrative.
Banjoko casts her net wide to include those who reside in the city like Manjit Sahota and Victoria Williams alongside others who grew up in Nottingham but have since relocated. Poetry of Teacher of English Stanley O. Ayodeji, author of Damage Limitation, After the Riot and Secure, currently residing in Manchester is included. The poem of Journalistic writer and poet Mkuu Amani “RIP Blues Dance” takes us back to blues parties held in the 80s in Hyson Green. Amani is now located in Walsall and was appointed Poet Laureate to the Mayor of Walsall in 2014.
Post-war pioneers such as Ainsley Deer are acknowledged for championing the Jamaican language patwa, it is through efforts from people like Deer that patwa permeates poetry writing across the UK. Space is also created for new writers with Fiona McGowan making her poetic debut with “Bait”. In between the pages of creative responses Banjoko plots some of the key organisations which have defended Black and South Asian creatives over the last 70 years as a foothold for future artists to build on.
You can purchase a copy of Seeds of Resistance here.
This is the second in our mini blog series for Black History Month, 2024 and was written by Dr Panya Banjoko.