A New Black Vanguard

A detail from a photo by Tyler Mitchell, titled Ugbad Abdi, dated 2019.

Featuring Tyer Mitchell and Antwaun Sargent

April 8, 2020

Recently, we along with so many others have been turning to deep conversations with friends and family for comfort and stimulation, even as we remain miles apart. This week’s episode features a conversation we recorded in less distanced times with two friends of the gallery, the photographer and filmmaker Tyler Mitchell and the critic and curator Antwaun Sargent. 
 
In their spirited dialogue, these two leading voices of their generation grapple with what success means today for young black artists and address the radical power shift from gatekeepers to artists, the breakdown of barriers between fashion and art photography, cautionary tales of social media groupthink and overexposure, and historical artists who made the new black vanguard possible.

Image: Tyler Mitchell, Ugbad Abdi, 2019 (detail)

A detail from a photo by Tyler Mitchell, titled Ugbad Abdi, dated 2019.

Tyler Mitchell and Antwaun Sargent