July 30, 2020
Chatting the Pictures

Chatting the Pictures: Black Lives Activist Replaces Slave Trader on English Monument

Welcome to Chatting the Pictures. Every two weeks, we present short highlights of a lively discussion between Michael Shaw, publisher of Reading the Pictures, and writer, professor and historian, Cara Finnegan. Each video is dedicated to analyzing a significant picture in the news.

By Staff
About the Video

This Instagram photo was taken by user @biggiesnug and circulated by Reuters. In the image, we see Jen Reid posing in front of the sculpture titled ‘A Surge of Power,” created by artist Marc Quinn and dedicated to Black Lives Matter. The pedestal was previously occupied by the statue of 17th-century British slave trader Edward Colston which occupied the site for 125 years. Reid was widely photographed standing on top of the platform in Bristol, England, after protesters tore it down. In the video, we discuss the racial, gender, and artistic impact of the image.

Chatting the Pictures is produced by Liliana Michelena.

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Michael Shaw

An analyst of news photos and visual journalism, and a frequent lecturer and writer on visual politics, photojournalism and media literacy, Michael is the founder and publisher of Reading the Pictures.

Cara Finnegan

Cara Finnegan is a writer, photo historian, and professor of Communication at the University of Illinois. She has been affiliated with Reading The Pictures for nearly 15 years, most recently as co-host of Chatting The Pictures. Her latest book is Photographic Presidents: Making History from Daguerreotype to Digital, out with University of Illinois Press in spring 2021.

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