Born in Zanzibar but raised in England, Lubaina Himid was one of the pioneers of the Black Art movement in the 1980s. It offered a forum for black artists who were exploring the social and political issues surrounding black history and identity.
This is a double portrait of the artist's paternal grandfather, a Lancashire publican, and her maternal grandmother in Zanzibar. They never met in life but are united here above their respective emblems of sawdust and sand. Separated by geography and culture, their histories converged in the birth of their grand daughter.
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