by Clara Kim
First published 2020
Clara Kim chronicles the creation of Kara Walker's ambitious installation for Tate Modern's Turbine Hall in fall 2019. The book follows Walker, the New York artist known for her bold examinations of race, gender, sexuality and violence, as she develops her latest Hyundai Commission. Kim documents the artistic process from conception through completion, showing how Walker draws on her signature techniques of cut-paper silhouettes, shadow puppets, and large-scale sculptural work. The artist shares archival images and influences that shaped this particular piece, while essays by Kim and novelist Zadie Smith explore Walker's career trajectory. Since the mid-1990s, Walker has gained international recognition for work that confronts slavery's legacy and antebellum Southern history through drawings, prints, murals, and projections. This documentation captures both the technical evolution of a major installation and the personal vision driving Walker's continued exploration of America's racial past.
Genres: art, biography-memoir, 21st-century, art-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family
Setting: Tate Modern, New York
Period: Mid-1990s, 2019
160 pages · Paperback · Tate Publishing
Content warnings: racism, sexism, violence