Spotlight on The Met: The groundbreaking 'Flight into Egypt' exhibition celebrates the creative brilliance of artists like Chester Higgins, Awol Erizku and Julie Mehrety, drawing powerful connections between ancient Egypt and the African diaspora.
Chester Higgins: Capturing the Spirit of Africa and its Diaspora.
Higgins, an acclaimed American photographer whose work often resonates deeply with the Ethiopian and African diaspora, contributes a photograph from his remarkable book Sacred Nile to the exhibit. As described by The Met, this image "exemplifies American photographer Chester Higgins's career-long engagement with the cultures, communities, and histories of Africa and its diaspora."
In Sacred Nile, Higgins explores the River Nile, from Ethiopia, through the historic region of Nubia in modern Sudan, and onward to the anxient land of Kemet in Egypt, uncovering the African origins of philosophy and spirituality and revealing histories often omitted from mainstream narratives." Reflecting o his work, Higgins notes, "Sacred Nile reintroduces you to the history of African people, a history that began thousands of years before the pilgrimage of the African continent." Over his decades-long career, including 38 years as a staff photographer for The New York Times, Higgins has consistently challenged and expanded visual representations of people of color. His work offers a poignant reminder of Africa's foundational contributions to global civilization.