Walking around Photoville on a warm Thursday afternoon, I found choosing a single exhibition to focus on quite difficult. Though each exhibition was unique, nothing really screamed out at me. That is, until I saw Barron Clairborne’s iconic portrait of Biggie Smalls in the corner of my eye and stopped dead in my tracks.
“Contact High: Hip-Hop’s Iconic Photographs and Visual Culture” showcases the evolution of hip-hop through the eyes of more than thirty photographers. Portraits and contact sheets that span across 40 years line the walls, featuring an array of hip-hop artists that range from Public Enemy to Nicki Minaj.
“The exhibit starts here in 1979,” associate curator Syreeta Gates tells me, pointing to a photo of Larry Levan DJing with a poster of a young Robin Williams behind him. “It ends in 2017,” Gates says, staring at a portrait of reggae artist Chronixx. The exhibition is a sneak peek, as it will be turned into a book in Fall 2018.
Viewing the photographs in order is crucial, as it feels like you’re literally walking through time. Sophie Bramly’s photograph of Futura 2000 and Keith Haring with their backs against each other encapsulates the 1980s in the same way that the contact sheets of Tupac and Aaliyah are the epitome of the 1990s. In the last 40 years, hip-hop has evolved from a subculture to a defining culture. This exhibition captures that incredible journey.
