Devotional

This exhibition was conceived and curated by Sonia Boyce, and included a hand drawn installation contextualizing the photographic works. It is the latest exhibition deriving from her ‘Devotional Series’, a continuing art research project.

It began with a group of women from Liverpool, brought together through the Motherlode project, in association with the Foundation for Art and Creative Technology (FACT). Asked to sing and recall the first record they ever bought, the women in the group began to build a collective map of black women in the British music industry beginning with Shirley Bassey. The Devotional series project continued to develop throughout the exhibition. Visitors were invited to nominate a musician who had meant something special to them and the result was continuously incorporated into an elaborately hand-drawn list on the wall. Celebrating black female singers in British entertainment, the drawing became part of a roll call of some one hundred and eighty names. Several of the singers including Joan Armatrading, Des'ree and Ms.Dynamite feature in nineteen photographic portraits by, for example, Bob Collins, Pennie Smith, Kofi Allen and Andy Earl included in the exhibition.

The exhibition was accompanied by a programme of events, including an Artist's Talk presented by Sonia Boyce.

The full list of sitters represented in photographic portraits is as follows: Adelaide Hall, Evelyn Dove, Elisabeth Welch, Winifred Atwell, Cleo Laine, Shirley Bassey, Bertice Reading, Millie Small, Poly Styrene, Janet Kay, Joan Armatrading, Linda Lewis, Neneh Cherry, Sade, Mica Paris, Des'ree, Floetry, Ms. Dynamite and Leona Lewis.
Sonia Boyce's previous works include: Missionary Position 2 (1985), Tate Collection; From Tarzan to Rambo (1985) Tate Collection; She ain't holding them up, she's holding on (some English rose) 1986, Cleveland Museum Collection; Clapping Wallpaper (1994), Victoria & Albert Museum Collection; Lovers' Rock - wallpaper (1998), Victoria & Albert Museum Collection; Devotional (1999-2004) and Devotional II (2005), Government Art Collection.

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