(light, somber music)
- [Male Speaker] In the presence of grace and grief,
the sun rose again, we faced the east.
Take a breath, hold it in, release.
You are precisely where you were meant to be.
The theater's amiss with exhibitionists.
Please do not conflate what your reality is with this.
Instead, suppose you belong to the continuous stream.
Juxtaposed with the fleeting, you are infinite.
(cars rushing past)
- It was important to me that I told the story,
just because I don't know another person
who could have told it better than me, just
because she was mine.
(soft, somber piano music)
Oh, Goodness, Breonna as a baby.
Breonna was easy.
She didn't cry a lot, she slept all night,
she never was really sick, she just was a great baby.
Everybody was like, "Oh, I'll keep Breonna!" (laughs)
My cousin would always say, "She's easy breezy!"
She was definitely my first best friend.
We grew up together, I was a kid having a kid.
She was great, she was fun.
Then, she started to grow up.
We always talk about her having a old soul.
She loved to be around my mother, and listen to blues.
She was just the best kid. (rap music playing)
* But I still feel them *
* I just walked in the building *
(singing and chattering)
(somber music)
(phone clatters to ground)
- [Camerawoman] Oh!
(chattering)
- When she started to be a teenager,
she always would be like,
"Ma, stop getting your hair braided all the time,"
'cause I always was like, "Give me some braids
"and I can go about my business."
"No, I want you to wear some curls!"
I'm like, "Is you crazy?" (laughs)
But then, there was Breonna, and she was
such a diva from a little age.
And I'm like, "I don't know what I'm supposed
"to do with that! (laughs)
"I don't know how," 'cause I've never wore makeup,
I've never been a girl in a dress growing up.
And then here she is, all she wants to do is,
"I want to be made up and wear these dresses!"
And I'm like, "Okay!" (chuckles)
She took so much pride in how she looked.
(somber piano music)
She always talked about being a nurse.
And I knew she'd end up helping people,
'cause my mother had diabetes, so she would,
"Can we go to my granny house
"so I can check her blood sugar?"
I'm like, "Oh my god, leave her alone!" (laughs)
But that was her thing, and so everything
she kind of was doing in life
was getting her on the path to be a nurse.
(gentle, somber music)
She was a planner.
Everything had to be a perfect way.
She hated failure, she hated for something not to go right.
She'd make these plans, and that's the way it went.
I don't know if you've ever seen her hair.
People say Breewayy all the time,
and that's where it comes from.
It's like, "Oh my god, if you don't do that,
"you better do it the Bre way!"
(chattering)
(shouting)
(music playing in background)
She's very family-oriented.
We have to have these game nights,
or these family barbecues, and she would put it together.
She's not gonna cook nothing,
but she'll (laughs) put it all together!
She, yeah, she was definitely the glue for us.
- [Interviewer] I love hearing you talk about her.
- It's easy.
(somber piano music)
- [Kenneth] I don't know what's happening,
somebody kicked in the door and shot my girlfriend!
Help, oh my god, Breonna! (sobbing)
Bre...
- I'm okay, I maintain it.
I think...
I'm still trying to figure it out.
It's just, it still doesn't seem real.
I don't know how to get used to it.
So yeah, I have good days and bad.
Just...
I just can't get used to her not being here.
This here is Breonna's vision board.
She was ready for life.
She was so excited to be finding who she was,
and becoming who she was.
And so it was a lot of promises to herself,
a lot of promises about who she wanted to be and become.
She always talked about her future,
and her having a baby,
and starting a family of her own.
She put, at 26, she would be ready, set,
and change the world.
And it's crazy, because at 26, she was murdered,
which is insane.
"Timeless."
She didn't get that, though.
She just was robbed of all of this.
(soft, gentle music)
This was actually one of the very first paintings
that I ever got.
It was a local artist here, Jaylin.
When I got this, I couldn't believe it.
To just see anybody paint her like that was amazing.
I never even thought about people painting her,
what that would be, or why anybody would want to do it.
So, I think that's probably why this is
one of my favorites.
This is one one of my friends did, Sheree.
She...
Yeah, of course, everybody knows, Breonna and these,
she loves these butterflies,
she loves anything that sparkles.
I have so much art that people have sent me of Breonna,
and just to see all this different creativity, to see
the different ways people saw her,
not only that they did it, but to find me,
to make sure that I got it, that I could appreciate it.
So, this room was put together
to just honor all the people who showed up for Breonna.
For me, I just kind of come in here
and sit and be quiet, and not have to worry about anything,
and just be surrounded by Breonna, period.
- When I see the paintings of my sister,
it's kind of like a bittersweet type of thing,
because it's like... (sighs)
It doesn't fill the void of her being actually gone.
But it does give you a sense of,
she is there, and she's watching you.
I miss everything, honestly.
I miss her smell, her touch,
her voice, her laugh, her smile.
Miss it all.
- [Tamika] People share these stories about
how Breonna has affected their lives.
And now I know,
not everybody knows how to protest,
or knows how to get involved.
And so then, that's where you're learning
how this art comes into play.
They found their way to protest, and that's what mattered.
We all got different positions in this movement,
and to see how art's been a part of history,
and to know that, I've never paid it no mind before,
and it's such an important part.
(light, somber piano music)
- My process is my life,
because in my world, I have sensations of freedom
that don't exist in the real world.
And making these paintings is a privilege in itself.
I walk into my studio remembering that every day,
what a privilege it is to be able to make these paintings,
to create something for my people, for this country,
and connecting myself to that kind of imagery
of self-satisfaction and dignity,
and creating a narrative that is,
for the most part, non-existent in the American art canon.
I had never painted anyone
that was no longer alive and living among us.
So, that was a big deal to me, because I wasn't sure
whether I was gonna be able to capture
what I think makes the painting special,
which is this energy transfer that happens
between the model and the artist,
and the artist and the canvas.
I didn't want to do it unless
I was gonna be able to find meaning in it,
and it was gonna be something that was phenomenal.
(soft music box tune plays)
But something in my gut told me to do it.
I reached out to her mom.
I just asked her to send me a few pictures,
things that I was hoping would not be in the public.
Because her image had been replicated so many times,
I was trying to do it in a way that
was gonna be different and special.
(light, bluesy music)
- You know, I've never dealt with art,
or never been a part of that world,
so I never really knew anything about her,
except for this one thing
everybody talks about, Michelle Obama! (laughs)
And it's like, "Oh my god,
"this lady who painted Michelle wants to talk to me!"
And I'm like, "I'm nobody, I don't," (chuckles)
I didn't know what to think, or what to say,
or how this conversation would go.
But it was a very easy conversation, she was beautiful,
and it was just about knowing Breonna,
just making sure that she would capture her
in the right element.
- I got the text, and it was a video
of her and her mom Double Dutching,
and Breonna had the ropes, and her mom had jumped in.
And I got to hear her giggle and laugh,
and I'm just like, "She was a baby, a young woman."
And for all intents and purposes,
this was an all-American family.
They drove around in Dodge Chargers,
and her mom was part of a motorcycle club.
I mean, how American can you get?
- [Tamika] We just kinda talked a lot about
what type of person she was, and how she dressed,
and we talked about her wanting to paint Breonna in a dress.
- We arrived at the model's house and got dressed,
tried on the different dresses.
The one that I thought was gonna work didn't work.
I remember walking to the bathroom,
and I'm talking to her, (chuckles)
which I know sounds crazy, but I was like,
"Breonna, what color do you want this dress to be?
"I need you to,
"I need you to talk to me, girl.
"Just tell me what color you want this dress to be."
I want her to, I wanted her to like it, you know?
And so, I get back into the studio, and
as we're moving from color to color,
the background at that time was blue,
and then the dress turned blue, and I'm like, "Wait, stop.
"I think that's it."
(unzipping garment bag)
So, this is Breonna's dress.
Looks very different.
Yeah, I made it a little bit higher
for her than it was,
because I feel like that's what she
(laughs) would have wanted, as a 24-year-old,
a 20-something-year-old.
(soft, ethereal music)
It allowed you to focus on her face,
and it had an energy that was calming and peaceful
ethereal and strong.
And then on top of that, it's a love story.
She had an image of Kenneth's hand holding
the engagement ring and the wedding ring
that he was gonna use to propose to her.
I felt like that actually had
to absolutely be a part of the painting.
And so, I asked for his permission.
He was like, "Absolutely."
And so, that became a part of the piece,
and her story, as well.
I think it's one of the things that just, for me,
made it even more heartbreaking,
the loss of her life, the loss of their love.
* I *
* Give it all away *
- [Amy] It's a painting of her,
it's a memory of an American tragedy.
* I'll be home soon, I *
- When I saw it, it just, it blew you away.
It blew you away.
And it really went to who Breonna was.
- That necklace that she wears in that is a necklace
that my grandmother had worn before she passed,
and so Breonna always wore it.
And so just seeing her in her blue gown,
being herself, it actually felt like it was real,
and it was actually her.
- The painting was sitting in my studio,
and I'm like, "Something needs to happen to this."
And I felt like it should go to the Speed Museum,
because this could be a balm in Gilead,
it could be a way for
people to just find some kind of solace.
(soft music)
- On March 13th, 2020, we made the decision,
like a lot of institutions,
to close the museum because of the pandemic.
What we didn't know was that,
in the early hours of that day,
a young woman named Breonna Taylor had been killed
in her apartment in Louisville.
- This was in our neighborhood, and it was one of our own.
So, Breonna Taylor represents many of us.
And for so long, that had been something
that was so characteristic to black male experience.
This time, it was a black female experience,
so it was the great equalizer.
Now, it's not them, those people, it's all of us,
and it could really be me.
- We're an art museum, we don't save lives,
we can't solve issues of police brutality, we do art.
And that's why, though,
when we saw Amy Sherald's portrait of Breonna,
we felt that maybe art had an answer to offer Louisville.
(soft guitar music)
* Good Lord, bless the seedlings *
* And the hands that keep them *
* The air above them and the lands underneath them *
* It's not enough to love them *
* She said nurture then you free them *
* Only those who take advantage ever keep them *
* Steeped in tradition *
* The old heads spoke, so we listen *
* And a few of us remembered what was whispered *
* Play hard, play fair, play your position *
* Walk good, be well, be the difference *
- I knew that an exhibition was something
that I wanted to do, but I'm not a curator,
and so finding the right curator was important for it.
Choosing Allison was the best decision.
- I wanted to understand, for Ms. Palmer,
what this exhibition meant for her
and her daughter's legacy, and she was very clear.
She wanted to show people who Breonna really was.
She wanted to show that Breonna brought people together,
and show the struggles they're going through
and continue to go through to get justice.
- And she said something I'll never forget.
She said she loved the portrait for the way
it depicted her daughter's uplifting spirit.
And so I think that shaped our vision, then,
that somehow, we would do our best
to have the whole exhibit in some ways embody
that spirit of her daughter.
- They definitely kept me in a major part
of putting it all together, so it was great.
And to work with Allison was beautiful, and she just,
she has this beautiful spirit,
and she just was really good to me and my family.
- Breonna was bright, and her personality
was bright and colorful.
I asked Ms. Palmer, you know,
"What were her favorite colors?
"I heard she's bright and colorful,"
and she said, "Purple and Kentucky blue."
And so, I worked with Adrienne Miller
on the Speed team to find a blue black,
and that's the color of the walls,
that deep, rich purple.
Oftentimes, what you're reading in the galleries
is a voice of the museum.
This was something very different.
(light guitar music)
- [News Anchor] Officers say they were shot at
and they shot back.
Her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker,
was charged with attempted murder for shooting at police.
* It's like they came to get them *
* Like the main aim was to hit them *
* Shame, shame the system *
* To add insult to loss, now it's blame the victim *
* What's the cost to get change around here *
* I'm just a stranger passing through *
* What's that hanging over there *
* Strange fool, so familiar *
* Hear the silence and the dissonance *
(police sirens wailing)
* And they're coming, you keep listening *
- [News Anchor] One year ago today, Louisville police shot
and killed 26-year-old Breonna Taylor.
So far, no one has been directly charged with her death.
- [Allison] Hank Willis Thomas makes work
about gun violence.
He lost his cousin Songha,
who was his best friend, 20 years ago.
- [Tamika] The stars was amazing to me,
to just realize, all over the world,
that this is happening to people with gun violence.
And so, to just actually be able to see a star put down
for every single person was amazing to me.
* When that bright star collapsed *
* The world had to take notice *
* The so-called social contract needs a makeover *
- When I received the email from Steven Reily
to have the opportunity to tell this story,
it was very personal.
I lost my brother to gun violence
a year and a half ago, and
I know what traumatic loss by gun violence feels like,
and what it does to a family and a community.
My brother is on that flag.
* Let it breathe *
* Let us breathe *
* Let it breathe *
- [Allison] I think a big part of telling the story
of Breonna Taylor is telling the story around the protests,
and everything that followed.
- We wanted to elevate somebody local
that hadn't been discovered or elevated yet.
- I was in the army, I was active in military,
I was medically retired,
so I picked up the camera as a hobby about four years ago.
I really didn't start taking
pictures of people until last summer, during the protests.
(light, tense music)
As that first night unfolded,
you could literally just feel the emotion
coming off of people.
A lot of anger, you know, just frustration.
The first one, it was about a week
before the grand jury announcement,
Tamika Palmer and her family organized a rally.
A lot of energy, great march.
The second photo, another really emotional day.
It was the day of the grand jury verdict,
where Dan Cameron decided
not to charge any of the officers
for anything regarding Breonna.
And I just remember,
once they got through reading the charges,
everybody was kind of just looking around, like it's,
"Hold on, is that it?
"It's over?"
And I mean, the place just erupted.
It erupted.
- [News Anchor] Demonstrators taking to the streets
in Louisville.
- [News Anchor] Dozens of people were arrested last night
as several US cities joined Louisville
in protesting the grand jury's decision
not to indict any of the three officers involved
in the Breonna Taylor fatal shooting.
(light, somber music)
- It was an emotional day.
And I will say that day
was the first day that actually,
I kind of broke down
when I was going through those pictures.
I literally broke down that night.
Just, it was just so much emotion.
I was inspired by what I saw amongst
the day-to-day folks who were just down there every day,
taking a stand.
So, I'm honored to help tell the story of
what took place last summer.
- I truly believe that photojournalism has the potential
to change the world, and change the outcomes,
and sway the outcomes of different situations.
(somber piano music)
It was on May 28th, 2020,
my best friend called me
and told me that seven people had been shot downtown.
So, we left, and went out,
and experienced a lot of those protest scenes.
And I just saw that there was a story there
that needed to be told, about this woman,
this citizen of our city,
who was the reason that people were out.
- Justice for black girls is not
just about mourning us when we die!
It's about celebrating us while we live!
- This photo was taken the day
after Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced
that there would be no charges
towards the officers involved in the raid.
Led to a few large interactions
with the police in several different neighborhoods.
Tons and tons of arrests.
The next morning, Travis was doing one of his famous chants,
calling for everybody to be let out of jail,
and you can tell, he's got a pretty joyous look on his face,
you know, just got a really soft smile,
which he pretty much always had.
It was a really beautiful moment.
It was one of those moments that I never would have imagined
would've been on a wall of a museum in my town.
And that was the photo that was used
at his memorial, as well.
He and his girlfriend were,
(somber music)
I think they were coming back from a protest,
or they were on their way to one,
and he had two men approach him
in front of his car,
and they shot him four times in the heart,
essentially killing him on the spot.
There's something really interesting about bearing witness
to instances of gun violence.
What do you do with the power of witnessing these things?
Do you have the power to do anything about it?
I try to observe while being a good witness
to the history that's unfolding in front of us.
(crowd chattering)
- In my curatorial practice,
I've really made it my life's work
to focus on working closely with artists and audiences
to call people into a space who perhaps
feel disenfranchised.
(light, somber music)
- It can sound silly to some people
that just don't understand it,
but to see yourself represented in a space like that,
and museum institutions are places that tell you,
"We hold these objects that are valuable,
"we tell you what's important,"
it makes you feel important.
- [Allison] Having art by these artists in these galleries
at the Speed Art Museum
is in effect a decolonizing of this space.
The gallery that holds Amy Sherald's portrait
of Breonna Taylor typically holds a painting by Rembrandt
that is in the Speed's collection.
- As I was walking, seeing you today,
my emotion is so profound,
because there are so many black faces
who were not invited before to this institution.
This institution is yours.
The story that belongs here is your story.
- I think the most successful part of this exhibition
is that Tamika Palmer feels happy in this space,
and that her family and the Louisville community feel
that they belong here.
(soft music box tune plays)
- You get down here to the portrait, and it's breathtaking.
And it's, you just stand there, and,
most of the time, you just,
people are just standing there staring at it.
It's not
even a lot to have to say about it, just
the beauty in it, the way she captured Breonna.
(soft, bluesy music)
To have it end up in a museum,
and it's gonna be a part of history at this point,
it's unreal.
I've said it over and over,
I always knew she would be great, I just never thought
it would be through through this.
But Breonna always brought people together,
and so I think that that's what this exhibit has done.
People have traveled from all over the world to see it,
and so, she's always done that for us.
- Her life is more than that one moment
that brought her into our lives.
She represents herself, and she represents
so many other women who were lost to gun violence.
But I just, I think
I just want people to be able to breathe,
just take a breath,
and feel the peace that painting is giving,
and from what her mother says,
feel the energy that she would have given you
had she been in the room,
because she was a joy to be around,
and I think that's what I want people to leave with,
and to carry with them.
- [Interviewer] Do you think she would like her portrait?
- She would love her portrait.
She would love it.
She would have felt like, "Oh my god, I'm just,
"I'm so grown in this picture! (laughs)
I'm so- - Gorgeous.
- Yeah, she would've loved it.
She would've definitely took pride in that.
I'm honored.
(light, jazzy music)
* Forget *
* What they say *
* When I look in the mirror *
* There's victory all on my face *
* Who cares *
* What they say *
* Now that it's all over *
* I'm standing here after the pain *
* I, I, I refuse to *
* Live my, live my life in fear *
* Found that strength in me *
* To just go 'head and kick down that door *
* And say go be free *
* Take your throne *
* I've been fighting this war, been defeated before *
* I've finally settled the score *
* Go be free *
* I'm so past second chances, I've made up my mind *
* Checkmate, it's over, you've run out of time *
* I am the one with the crown on my head *
* And I'm doing just fine *
* Now I'm free *
* Free *