This will be the first time this online exhibition is shown within a physical space, and is a collaborative exhibition between the University of Kent, FACE and the Horniman Museum. The original online exhibition, which was available via the FACE and Horniman websites, was curated by both staff and students who were invited by FACE and the Horniman museum to contribute work.
The exhibition has been curated by Fashion designer and Senior Lecturer Davina Hawthorne (De Montfort University) and Photographer and Associate Professor Max Kandhola (Nottingham Trent University), both council members of FACE and Co-Founder of FACE, Sharon Lloyd. Contributing editors: Dr Sarah Bryne, Professor Emma Tarlo, Rose Sinclair (MBE), Andrew Ibi, Jacob Goff, Benita Odogwu-Atkinson and Michelle Marshall.
Both students and academics explore the complex relationship between hair and identity, revealing the importance of generational traditions in different communities and the power of creative invention. The visual and written chronicles that emerge are political, many of them highlighting the continued presence of racial discrimination in relation to hair as well as documenting resistance and creativity in spite of and in response to this.
The exhibition will seek to take visitors on a journey of discovery of the importance of hair from within the academic and student educational space.
On the Record. FACE x Horniman Hair Stories. Sharon N Hughes - Beauty Lies in Authenticity
You can view more videos from the On The Record series on the FACE YouTube channel
The exhibition will launch on Wednesday 27 March, 5pm in Keynes College and remain
open and free to view for all staff, students, and members of the community in
Keynes Atrium and Teaching Gallery spaces until July 2024.
If you would like to attend the Private View please contact Becky Lamyman on StudentEDI@kent.ac.uk by 25 March 2024.
#Black365 is a yearlong campaign to celebrate Black culture, Black excellence and Black achievement at the University of Kent.
FACE (Fashion Academics Creating Equality) works to challenge Higher Education Institutions and industry in fashion, art and design fields to be more inclusive, unified and equitable, with a particular spotlight on issues concerning race, colour and ethnicity. More information on the FACE academics who have supported this exhibition through text and works can be found at weareface.co.uk.
Horniman Museum is located in Forest Hill, South East London, and aspires to connect visitors with global cultures and the natural world, encouraging us to shape a positive future for the world we all share and was the Art Fund Museum of the Year winner 2022.
Works and text produced by FACE Academics and Students for Horniman Museum’s Hair: Untold Stories can also be viewed online