The Red Bulletin April 2021 (US)

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T H E D E P A R T U R E Bolanle Tajudeen MAKING ART HISTORY This U.K.-based creative, activist and entrepreneur is reinventing the education system with her Black Blossoms School of Art and Culture. When Bolanle Tajudeen began frequenting galleries and museums eight years ago, while studying PR at the University of the Arts London (UAL), it changed her life. She fell in love with art. But it was the inequality the Nigerianborn Londoner encountered in both the education system and the mainstream art world that prompted her to become a curator. “I was around so many creatives of color, but I didn’t see their work reflected in the industry,” she says. At UAL, Tajudeen began displaying the work of Black artists for Black History Month. By 2019, she’d hosted successful exhibitions and taught a sell-out course, Art in the Age of Black Girl Magic, at Tate Britain. Yet she was struggling: “I worked in a fried chicken shop to pay the rent. I was applying for museum and gallery roles and not getting them. I grew up in [public housing], so I had to build my own network. No one knew I was broke.” Fast-forward to 2021 and the 32-year-old has found a way to bypass traditional institutions and promote a more diverse perspective on art. Her Black Blossoms School of Art and Culture curates affordable, accessible online courses that aim to decolonize, deconstruct and democratize the education system. And, Tajudeen says, that’s just the beginning. the red bulletin: What does art mean to you? bolanle tajudeen: I never went to galleries growing up— they didn’t feel like spaces for me. But art was everywhere. At Nigerian parties, the way people would tie their head scarves was artistic. Even how the boys would hang around our [home]—compositionally, it was an aesthetic. I feel seen when I see art that speaks to me or has been made with me in mind. I’m very political, but I’m over standing on a soapbox. I believe art can be a tool for change. It speaks to me being a woman, being Black, being a mother. Art helps me articulate feelings that I might not be able to with words. What hurdles did you face in becoming a curator? I’m not from a curatorial background. I’ve educated myself. I’ve taken courses and attended conferences and artists’ talks to really understand the history of Black art in this country. And I’ve got a teaching qualification. But I didn’t want to study art history. The courses don’t talk about the things I want to discuss. I didn’t want to spend more money just to learn about old, dead white guys. Was that sentiment why your Tate Britain course sold out? It was one of the first courses of its kind at any major institution. It focused on the historical and contemporary practices of Black female and nonbinary artists, using the Tate collection and work outside of that, too. I put a lot about activism in there; how artists have responded to social upheaval and political change. It spoke to people, as there was nothing else like it. Is that why you founded your school, Black Blossoms? I first thought about it while working as an education officer at UAL after my studies. I wanted to decolonize the curriculum, get more authors of color on reading lists, more [minority] lecturers teaching courses. Then, when [COVID] closed museums and galleries, I decided to teach online. I realized I knew so many great experts and this was our chance to make a change. For me, the pandemic took away the power of universities and other institutions. We can all be curators now; we’ve got Zoom, and people are doing courses at home in a way that felt unnatural in 2019. Before, I never had the confidence, the social clout or the capital to say, “We don’t need the backing of an institution—we can do it ourselves.” What has been the response? Amazing. People have said it’s revolutionary. What’s next? I’m working on opening 40 artist studios, a gallery and a website where artists and writers of color can write about the art world. My ideal would be for all Black households in Britain to have a Black Blossoms subscription. A lot of Black people don’t feel comfortable in museums and galleries—this could be their entry point. Basically I’m hoping for a mini Black Blossoms empire! black-blossoms.online ALEXIS CHABALA RUTH MCLEOD HAIR: SHAMARA ROPER, @SHAMARA_ROPER; NAIL TECH AND MAKE-UP: JENELLE ROPER, @JENELLEROPER 12 THE RED BULLETIN
“GROWING UP, GALLERIES DIDN’T FEEL LIKE SPACES FOR ME.” THE RED BULLETIN 13
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