Is there a general universal understanding on how Hip-Hop culture changed the face of American music? There are a hoard of paintings, videos, and photos with the culture’s aptitude on display.
Stationed at the Oakland Museum of California is the profound exhibit, “Respect: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom,” aims to narrate the story of Hip-Hop’s esteemed coming with use of flashy mix media featuring multiple components that dramatize the movement’s origins and promising future.
The curator of the exhibit, Rene de Guzman seeks importance in chronicling the origins of Hip-Hop culture along with applying the same knowledge to its evolution and current significance. Of course, this is information the enthusiast found museum worthy and it is obvious he does not regret it. “It’s reached this status where it’s a mature, sophisticated complex culture, if you think about it,” Guzman says of the status of Hip-Hop via PBS Hour.
“Most museum exhibits look at the origins of a work, but we’re looking at what it means when hip-hop is approaching its 40th anniversary,” Guzman told San Francisco Chronicle. “We’re looking at it as a youth movement.”
For almost 45 years, Hip-Hop has notably become one of the most influential social movements to strike the globe. Decades of culturally history hoard the exhibition with supremely valuable artifacts such as flyers from Bronx block parties of the ’70s, Grandmaster Flash’s turntable, and a handwritten stimulating essay by Tupac Shakur serving as proof of the movement’s globe bound reach.
Hip-Hop’s entry into the mainstream realm is one of the focal points of the exhibit. While the international outreach of Hip-Hop cannot be denied, those outside of the culture challenges the stance of being more local and underground. Overall, the common misconceptions about Hip-Hop, especially misogynist content, are flipped into question by the exhibit which strictly sheds light on Hip-Hop’s affirmative influence.
“But when we talk about the demeaning of women, do we also emphasize and promote artists that helped pave the way, like Queen Latifah, right, and Monie Love? Do we talk about the art that they were creating?,” Grammy-nominated Hip-Hop artist Mandolyn Ludlum aka Mystic told PBS Hour. And, also, do we amplify the male artists, the male hip-hop artists who are creating music that honors women?”
The exhibit, “Respect: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom” opened back in March and is open for visits until Aug. 12. Watch PBS Hour take a scoop into the profound exhibit, below.
