Viewing Life Between Islands: Caribbean-British Art 1950s – Now

This captivating show looks at the relationship between the Caribbean and Britain in art over 70 tumultuous years. It features more than 40 artists, who were either born in the Caribbean or have Caribbean heritage, working across film, photography, painting, sculpture and fashion. It also includes works by British artists inspired by the Caribbean such as Peter Doig, Lisa Brice and Chris Ofili.

There’s a lot to take in here, from the first feature film by a Black British director to Steve McQueen’s earliest work, Exodus, which shows two elderly West Indian men on the 243 bus home. Also shown is an early photo of Bob Marley, Frank Bowling’s famous 1968 work Who’s Afraid of Barney Newman, and bold, brilliant canvases by Aubrey Williams, an artist of the Windrush generation who came to Britain in the 1950s.

The Notting Hill setting appears throughout the exhibition as do powerful black-and-white photographs showing intimate scenes of love, family and social gatherings — and racial and political violence. Also worthy of note is a new iteration of Michael McMillan’s The Front Room, a reconstruction of a fictional 1970s interior, exploring the role of the home as a safe space for social gatherings at a time of widespread prejudice.

Life Between Islands is a superb show that deserves slow and considered looking. Take your time and you’ll reap the rewards.