Postcard relating to a publication, 2007
Published by: Freedom & Culture 2007
Year published: 2007
Unpaginated.

Large postcard of Yinka Shonibare, ‘The Wanderer’ 2006-2007) (detail) that was included in a flap/pouch in the catalogue for Crossing the Waters (Cartwright Hall, Bradford, 1 September - 2 December 2007). This was one of a number of exhibitions that took place throughout 2007 as part of Freedom & Culture 2007: The Bicentenary of the Parliamentary Abolition of the Slave Trade.

Alongside credits, the reverse of the postcard , issued by Freedom & Culture, described the Bicentenary as “A dynamic programme of artistic activity richly demonstrates the continuing role the arts play in the emancipation of the human spirit.” A now defunct website - www.freedomandculture.co.uk - was mentioned, as was a defunct email address, info@freedomandculture.co.uk.

The Foreword to the Crossing the Waters catalogue, by Mark Suggitt, Head of Museums, Galleries & Heritage at Bradford Museums Galleries & Heritage, included references to how the exhibition had come about. Wrote Suggitt, “An interesting fact about Crossing the Waters is that almost all of the works are drawn from the permanent collections of Bradford Museums, Galleries and Heritage. The works were acquired, it must be stressed, because of the artists’ positioning within contemporary British art. However, the Bicentenary provided an intellectual and historical rationale for showing these works as a group, albeit a very diverse one.”

Earlier in his Foreword, Suggitt had stated, “Crossing the Waters makes a significant contribution to Freedom and Culture, a dynamic, year-long, nationwide programme that marks the bicentenary of the Parliamentary Abolition of the Slave Trade in the British Empire. Freedom and Culture has been conceived and directed by Professor Lola Young of Cultural Brokers and Dr Nima Poovaya-Smith of Alchemy.”

Crossing the Waters was first exhibited at Cartwright Hall, before touring to the City Gallery, Leicester, 19 January - 1 March 2008. The exhibition featured work by Sonia Boyce, Uzo Egonu, Tam Joseph, Isaac Julien, Glenn Ligon, Hew Locke, Chris Ofili, Keith Piper, Ingrid Pollard, Yinka Shonibare, Carrie Mae Weems, and Aubrey Williams. All but two of the artists were of British background; Ligon and Weems were African-American practitioners.

This image of The Wanderer also appeared on the cover of the Crossing the Waters catalogue.