Katie Jernigan Speaks With Graphic Designer Bob Gumbs About the “Black is Beautiful” Movement
By Katie Jernigan – Standing 20 feet tall in the exhibition Icons of Style: A Century of Fashion Photography is the striking “Black Is Beautiful” mural—a large-scale reproduction of the poster that exemplified the “Black Is Beautiful” movement. Graphic designer Bob Gumbs describes his role within the movement and his inspiration behind the now-iconic poster.
What’s the “Black Is Beautiful” movement? What was the driving force behind it?
“Black Is Beautiful” celebrates the beauty of black people: their dark skin color, facial features, and natural hair. The movement began in the 1960s with inspiration from Marcus Garvey, the great Jamaican, Pan-Africanist leader, who in the 1920s encouraged people of African descent around the world to be proud of their African beauty and culture.
Read the full interview at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
