£35 million refurbishment produces little fruits, reopening to controversy and white gaze again.
Often touted as a banal and dusty old British appendage, the National Portrait Gallery is to be reopened with new art and collections following a £35 million refurbishment.
Heralding in a new wing named the Blavatnik Wing, funded by none other than Sir Leonard Blavatmik, patron of new galleries at the Tate Modern and Imperial War Museum it should come as no shock that the connection raises several eyebrows considering it’s just another billionaire whose identity is Ukrainian Born (that’s, born in Ukraine) American-British (gifted new nationalities due to wealth), business magnate (influential, and you’d have to be, to have that much money) philanthropist (meaning he dodged taxes faster than Prince Charles).
The new wing will house works by Oscar Wilde, John Singer Sargent, and Lucian Freud. Laura Knight and Gwen John. The man behind such endeavours is clearly addicted to putting his money into art pies, but I’m sure, like us, you’d prefer such philanthropy came under the influence of greatest need. Perhaps they’ve rid themselves of that distasteful Ed Sheeran portrait that used to hang menacingly in its lobby? Perhaps, perhaps not. Laura Knight’s self portrait is the only exhibit of a marginalised group, good for the history books, but it would be far more compelling to see how far the rights of Black and South Asian people have come, which is – not very far.
Lauded by the British Journal of Photography for obvious reasons that its cliched overused material is recycled by both exhibitionists, namely Caucasian male and female posers who are happy to be hung in its gallery without a thought for the marginalized and underrepresented. It fails to represent a wider pool of Britain’s inhabitants and follows its prior old look to a ‘new look’ gallery without a thought for those in greater need of representation such as the South Asian/Desi population and Romani people who are at greatest risk for racial abuse and assault, and rarely given celebrated parts in popular culture unless their presence is to fill the void of typecast characters.
When is the National Portrait Gallery reopening?
The National Portrait Gallery reopens 22nd June 2023 with several exhibitions of planned.
So, what is up first for exhibition at the gallery you ask? White photographer Yevonde and white musician Paul McCartney Photographs. Yes, that’s it, their centerpiece, their creme de la creme. So, let us hope for a greater spread of subject diversity in the near future and not a trend garnering void of done-before photos. But, when the aforesaid are captured, they’re photographed through the lens of over-privileged white men and women.
Leave a Reply