Ayana V. Jackson, born in 1977 in New Jersey but living between Brooklyn, Johannesburg, and Mexico City, was chosen for the poster of PHotoESPAÑA with her She Was Not Only Brave, She Was Beautiful, which is currently on display at the National Museum of Anthropology in Madrid.
She Was Not Only Brave, She Was Beautiful, by Ayana V. Jackson, 2023
In this image, a woman dressed in a skirt, blouse, and hat (apparently Mexican) holds a rifle against an abstract background. The large-scale photograph deconstructs the 19th and 20th-century portraits that defined the societies and subjects of that time. In this case, Jackson perpetuates a woman in a role and from a social stratum that reveals her authenticity, something that only photography can achieve. In this case, the photograph is the agent of change that fosters critical reflection on the role of museums as legitimizers of exclusionary narratives. Furthermore, this portrait, removed from the Statism and stereotypes of the historical imaginary, challenges us to inherited constructs about gender and class. She Was Not Only Brave, She Was Beautiful is part of the series dedicated to Mexican female guerrillas who were erased from National portraits.
P.S.: The artist addresses historical collections and appropriates colonial images to recreate them as a means of emancipation for this feisty woman with her body in action.
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