Black History Month: Turning the Page & Challenging Racist Iconography

13:30 – 14:30
Black History Month: Turning the Page. Representations of Blackness
Representations of Blackness in Medieval and Baroque Art

In a representative portrait of Prince Eugene, in the Belvedere collection, a Black page appears at his side whose stereotypical depiction belongs to a racist pictorial tradition. In European art, Black people are often illustrated as bystanders or allegorical figures, sometimes alike mere decorative attributes. In this guided tour the Historian Tayla Myree gives an understanding of Black representation in artwork in the Belvedere collection and wall paintings inside the Lower Belvedere.

Tour in English.

15:30 – 16:30
Black History Month: Challenging Racist Iconography. Lecture by Simon Inou
A History of Black and African Activism in Austria

From Julius Meinl to M*Brau beer, Austria has utilized racist imagery to depict Black people through advertising campaigns. These depictions however are not limited to advertisements but also have a history in literature, public space, cultural customs, museums, and other areas. In this lecture, journalist, sociologist, and activist Simon Inou will give a history of Black and African activism in Austria and how this racist iconography has been challenged historically and in the present.

The Lecture and Q&A will be held in German and English.
Event will be followed by drinks and further conversation.

Simon Inou studied sociology in Duala (Cameroon) and journalism in Vienna. For political and journalistic reasons, he fled to Austria, where he was granted asylum. In addition to his work as editor-in-chief of magazines and several radio stations and internet portals, he initiated numerous anti-racist projects. Simon Inou has received national and international awards for his work.