The Waters We Claimed by Richard Mensah
The Waters We Claimed by Richard Mensah explores Black people’s journey with water—from exclusion and trauma to reclamation, resistance, joy, and freedom in aquatic spaces. Until Jun 26 at Chilli Art Projects. Visit: https://www.artsy.net/show/chilli-art-projects-the-waters-we-claimed?sort=partner_show_position
Historically, segregation and racism denied access to pools and beaches. Laws, threats, and neglect kept Black communities out. Pools became sites of protest, like the 1964 acid attack in Florida.
But the story moves forward.
Now, these images celebrate joy, freedom, and belonging. Black bodies leap, float, swim, and rest—on their own terms. Each scene resists erasure and claims space.
Water once carried pain. It brought ancestors across oceans in chains.
Today, it also carries peace. It offers release.
These paintings honor the past. Yet, they focus on triumph. They show not just survival—but thriving in water.
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