- The portrait by Johann Zoffany commissioned in 1779 by Lord Mansfield that resurrected the story of “Belle”.
-BELLE –
The Motion Picture
I saw the motion picture “Belle” when it opened in New York City in May 2014 to approving audiences and strong ‘word of mouth’ acclaim. The beautifully written screenplay by Missan Sagay is based on a true story. As told by Ms Sagay she discovered the story under very unlikely circumstances as she took a walk through a nearby palace during a break from her medical studies at St. Andrews University more than a decade ago. During her walk along one corridor in the palace she came upon a room where a large portrait of two women hung on a wall. The way the two women seemed to relate to each other in the painting caught her attention and remained in her mind’s eye for years afterwards. After the completion of her medical degree and a few years of work as a practicing physician and screenplay writer, Ms Sagay decided to revisit and research the portrait that had caught her attention years earlier during that walk in the Scone Palace in Scotland. This research led to the discovery of the story of Dido Elizabeth Bell the daughter of a woman, Maria Belle, who had died over 250 years ago in a British colony deep in the American South*.
Maria Belle, a beautiful enslaved African woman, was found in the ‘hold’ of a captured Spanish ship during a naval battle between warships of the Spanish and British governments off the coast of 18th century Cuba. Maria Belle had been rescued from the Spanish warship by Sir John Lindsay, an officer in the British Royal Navy and captain of the 28 gun British warship HMS Trent. Marie and Sir John Lindsay fell in love after her rescue from the Spanish and apparently lived together near Mobile, Alabama where Sir John was stationed after the end of the war with Spain. They had a child, the eponymous Dido Elizabeth “Belle”.
The film opens when Sir John Lindsay, having been recalled from his post in Alabama and ordered to report for duty elsewhere in the British Empire, arrives in London to leave his young (perhaps five years old) daughter with his Great Uncle Lord John Mansfield to be brought up and raised with Lord Mansfield’s family in England.
The film depicts a period in the lives of Lord Mansfield and his family as they lived in a small town near London toward the end of the 18th century. Lord Mansfield, his wife, and daughter were people of some ‘means’ who led lives of historical significance but who are perhaps better known now than they were during their lifetimes. Their story though, and the peculiar circumstances of their lives, holds some special relevance in today’s world. The lead character, Dido Elizabeth Belle, a mixed race child, is unceremoniously delivered to her grand uncle to be reared while her father goes off to war. The grand uncle, Lord Mansfield, perhaps the most powerful man in the British Empire during the latter half of the 18th century, is also Lord Chief Justice of England. Mortified at first, Lord Mansfield hesitatingly takes the young girl into his home and raises her as his daughter. During this same time period one of the most important legal cases in the history of the Empire is presented to Lord Mansfield for a decision. The case involves and eventually leads to the abolishment of the slave trade in the British Empire. Thus the stage is set for a wonderful love story against a backdrop of great historical significance centered around the most powerful man in the British Empire during the latter half of the 18th century.
THE DIRECTOR
The film is directed masterfully by the much acclaimed British director Amma Assante. Ms Assante was brought in by producer Damian Jones to direct “Belle” after her directorial debut with the film “A Way of Life” won awards in England and the United States. Ms. Amma Asante began her career as a child actor, became a screen play writer, and has now developed into one of the most promising new film directors in the motion picture business.
The London Film Festival awarded Asante the inaugural Alfred Dunhill UK Film Talent Award, created to recognize the achievements of a new or emerging British writer/director who has shown great skill and imagination in bringing originality and verve to film-making.
film at the
belong to neither. They are the background…the fill…yet they both frame and animate the picture. They contribute mightily to the musical sound and to the visual pageantry…yet they are never identified either before or after the performance. We don’t know their names.
talented, independent and secure enough to fight back when mistreated. When she found Phil Spector cheating she once walked out of the studio leaving an 
toured as back-up singer for Luther Vandross until his death. She has toured with Tina Turner including the Twenty Four Seven Tour, Chaka Khan, Teddy Pendergrass, and Roberta Flack. Lisa Fischer earned a Grammy for her hit single How Can I Ease the Pain in 1991. Lisa Fischer has accompanied The Rolling Stones on every tour since 1989! Lisa Fischer – Likable, Lovable, and a very intensely focused entertainer ‘par exellence’.
John. Judith Hill wrote music for Spike Lee’s film Red Hook Summer and was and outstanding contestant on The Voice. Judith Hill is perhaps best know as Michael Jackson’s choice as a duet partner for his ‘This is It’! tour. Michael Jackson unfortunately died before the tour started. Judith Hill sang the tribute at Michael Jackson’s memorial in Los Angeles. Judith Hill is ‘up and coming’ in a very complex world…bouncing back from a big disappointment.
Andre Crouch, Chaka Khan, Michael Jackson, Ray Charles, and Madonna. Tata Vega sang lead on the Oscar nominated song for the movie The Color Purple.
a bit part in 
commentary by Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Mick Jagger, Sting, Luther Vandross and the other giants in the industry. This film sheds real light on the way the industry stars appreciate the talent and the work of the back-up singer/dancers thus showing a very human and otherwise unseen side of these superstar artists.
THE WEST” opened a few months ago with attendance by scholars, artists, writers, and students from throughout the Western World. Hosted by three centers of art and education in the city of Paris the homogenous blend of art and architecture provided the perfect atmosphere. The conference centered on the 111 papers presented by distinguished scholars in 19 panels over a four day period to an audience of over 500 attendees from Africa, Europe, North America, South America, and the Caribbean.
is represented and has been represented historically in visual and performance arts in the West. The view of the evolution of these various representations of the Black Body provides an unequaled depiction of the progress that has been made from the distant past to the present. More profoundly however, the ability to meet, share, and discuss these representations allows one to clearly see points, times, and places where intervention is urgently required to provide corrections to the historical narrative. As data has become more![registration Portraiture[s]](https://i0.wp.com/www.theactivescreen.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/registration-Portraitures.jpg?resize=300%2C186)
readily available to this rapidly growing community it is increasingly possible to turn intellectual and other resources to the objective study and examination of the historical data. This process and these discussions make graphically evident how racial bias and bigotry has systematically caused misrepresentations and distortions of reality and thereby negatively influenced the visual representation of The Black Body. Objective scholarship focused on the re-examination of the historical narrative as it pertains to representations of the Black Body is required to ‘set the record straight’ and to provide a sound basis for the intercultural discussions that must take place with the wider world if there is to be a better future.
an effort to support this continuing conversation I propose to profile each of the panel participants from the conference by providing some background and a brief discussion of each panel topic as presented at the conference.
was in transition towards independence. Barnor’s early portraitures and street photographs provide a visual history of the development of Ghana from the colonial period through independence and into the modern era. This early work covers the birth of Ghana and includes photographs of Kwame Nkrumah, the future president of Ghana , The Duchess of Kent, Richard Nixon, Andrew Young and many other politicians who visited Ghana in that period.
Lifestyle’ genre. During this period London was rapidly becoming a center for a new cultural revolution. Music, art, and fashion took the city by storm. The fashion world was ablaze and models were making millions. There was little interest however in the black lifestyle. Unable to get work as models notwithstanding black women were major trendsetters on London streets in their mini skirts, high heels and hair styles. 
inception in Johannesburg in the early 50’s, to become one of the most widely read magazines in Africa. Drum was very interested in photographs with black models and news about Africans generally. Barnor had done work for Drum in Ghana and had contacts there.
addicted to a lifestyle that included heavily chromed american cars, jazz music, and freedom. The magazine developed a reputation for dealing with social issues that affected black people in South Africa. The work that these writers and photographers produced at Drum changed the way that Black people were represented in society. Drum has been described by photographer 
Black writers, photographers, and their models. During this period (the ‘London period’) Barnor recruited, discovered and photographed models to fill this demand. As the fight against apartheid intensified the editors of Drum were forced to resign under pressure from the National
Police or to leave the Country to escape arrest. Drum magazine virtually disappeared for a time. The ANC ultimately succeeded in abolishing apartheid with the establishment of a new government. Drum has since reestablished itself and is now once again one of the leading magazines on the continent.
Mr. Barnor has spent 63 years of his life creating and helping others to create representations of the Black Body. His work, its impact and consequences are loud testimony to the importance of the quality of the representations that are made. It was a pleasure to meet and talk to him at the Black Portraitures conference.