In Conversation: Melvin Edwards and Amandine Nana
As part of Melvin Edwards' major retrospective at the Palais de Tokyo, the artist joined co-curator Amandine Nana for a public conversation delving into the stories and ideas that shape his work. This dialogue offered audiences an intimate glimpse into the artist’s creative journey—one marked by decades of travel, friendship and collaboration across the United States, the Caribbean, West Africa and France.
SOME BRIGHT MORNING is presented under the artistic direction of Naomi Beckwith. A pioneering figure in contemporary African-American art, Edwards is celebrated for his monumental abstract sculptures and site-specific installations forged from welded steel, barbed wire, chain and machine parts. Among his most iconic works is Lynch Fragments, a series of wall-mounted assemblages begun in 1963 that transformed industrial materials into powerful meditations on labor, memory and the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement. The exhibition also highlights his enduring collaborations with poets and his contributions to printmaking in Dakar, underscoring the depth and reach of his global artistic practice.
The conversation between Edwards and Nana offered visitors a closer look at the artist’s process and the social and historical contexts informing his career.
An artwork activation led by Edwards further animated the exhibition space on Saturday 25 October at 4:30pm, providing audiences with a live encounter with his sculptural practice.
Co-courated by François Piron with curatorial assistance from Vincent Neveux, SOME BRIGHT MORNING offers a vivid portrait of Edwards’ practice.
