Steve McQueen at the Whitney
Jun 9, 2016

Steve McQueen (b. 1969) is a visual artist and filmmaker whose films include Hunger, Shame and 12 Years a Slave, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2014. During the exhibition Open Plan: Steve McQueen, the artist participated in two special programs: a conversation with Donna De Salvo, Deputy Director for International Initiatives and Senior Curator on April 29, and a conversation with Dr. Cornel West, Professor of Philosophy and Christian Practice at Union Theological Seminary and Professor Emeritus at Princeton University. 

McQueen and De Salvo discussed his early work, including the film Bear (1993), as well as the installation for Open Plan, which centered on a newly expanded version of End Credits (2012), a video piece that presents documents from the FBI file kept on the legendary African American performer Paul Robeson (1898–1976). When asked whether he identified as a filmmaker or an artist, McQueen responded that he was an artist, and more specifically, a sculptor. His visceral and often challenging films are three-dimensional in their treatment of space, light, weight, and perspective.

On May 1, Steve McQueen spoke with the scholar and activist Dr. Cornel West about the legacy of singer, actor and political activist Paul Robeson. McQueen and West discussed Robeson’s unwavering commitment to justice and his international acclaim; Robeson sang for audiences around the globe and was known for his fearless advocacy of political and economic equality. Dr. West asserted that “artists are the vanguard of the species,” a utopian force for empathy and love. McQueen and West addressed Robeson’s legacy in view of the current political and cultural climate, including the presidential election, Black Lives Matter, and Beyoncé.

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Jackie Kong, Public Programs Intern