Reweaving the story of Black Britons

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Hastings Museum & Art Gallery will host a touring exhibition of Tapestry of Black Britons this autumn.

The exhibition, created by Jamaican/Haitian/British artist and cultural producer Paula Ogun Hector, explores the question of what Britain’s history would look like if the stories of its Black and diasporic communities were woven into the national story from the beginning.

Tapestry of Black Britons brings together five large-scale woven artworks that trace almost 2,000 years of African and Caribbean presence in Britain. The exhibition features the Hastings Bayeux, developed by Hastings Academy along with this exhibition.

The exhibition will be on display at HMAG from Saturday 10 October to Sunday 8 November as part of a nationwide tour.

Curator Paula Ogun Hector is a Jamaican/Haitian/British artist and cultural producer and a first-class AFRAS History graduate from the University of Sussex. A former BBC producer associated with BBC Black Britain, she has more than 20 years’ experience in inclusive storytelling across media, arts and education. She says: “Once a medium of power and prestige, tapestry becomes here a site of intervention: a place where history is transmitted through hands, memory and collective labour; where woven threads carry stories long marginalised in Britain’s official record. Weaving, a metaphor for the interconnectedness of human experiences, remains a dynamic medium that bridges tradition and innovation.”

Tapestry of Black Britons at Hastings Museum and Art Gallery – usual museum opening hours from Saturday 10 October to Sunday 8 November. tapestryofblackbritons.com, insta: @tapestry_of_black_britons, museum: hmag.org.uk 


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