Some of The Black Paintings (Fear of Black Consciousness) are undergoing further evolution. These works now incorporate corrugated iron as a backdrop, alongside shiny black fabric, expanding foam, African carvings, and wigs. The inclusion of corrugated iron is particularly significant as it explores concepts of extraction and exploitation, issues elaborated in the chapter on China in Africa. While the corrugated iron adds considerable aesthetic value to the artwork, it simultaneously raises concerns about the exploitation of people, their lands, and the environment.

 

At the global level, black consciousness faced the implication of global Euromodern colonialism. Its globality promised the threat of an aspiring antiblack world. This global challenge brought black consciousness as an awareness of hatred of black people into facing Black consciousness—the kind that reaches for possibilities by which to become agents of history.

Blacks of the first kind, or with black consciousness, often avoid addressing the injustice of societal efforts to make the world antiblack. They attempt, instead, to fix themselves through adaptation.

Lewis Gordon[i]

 

This evolution in the paintings underscores the complex interplay between aesthetics and socio-political commentary. The thematic shift towards incorporating materials like corrugated iron reflects a broader discourse within Forbes’ art practice on global economic practices and their impact on the black diaspora societies.

 

[i] Gordon Lewis R. Fear of Black Consciousness Pg 142