Join us for a special screening and discussion of We Were Here: The Black Renaissance Uncovered (2024), the latest documentary by award-winning US-based Italian-Ghanaian filmmaker and activist Fred Kuwornu.
Exhibited at the Central Pavillion of the Venice Biennale, the film challenges traditional narratives by uncovering the hidden histories of Black Africans in Renaissance Europe. It reveals how their lives, labour, and cultural contributions were systematically erased from canonical accounts. Blending archival research with powerful storytelling, Kuwornu offers what he calls a “historical remix,” challenging assumptions about Europe’s past and its enduring legacies of race and exclusion.
Following the screening, Fred Kuwornu will join Durham academics in conversation to explore the intersections of history, identity, and creativity, and to reflect on the challenges of recovering suppressed narratives. The event provides a rare opportunity to engage with a filmmaker whose work bridges scholarship and activism, while contributing to ongoing debates on decolonisation, equality, and belonging within and beyond the university.
This event is free to attend.
This event takes place at the Sir Thomas Allen Assembly Rooms Theatre, 40 N Bailey, Durham, DH1 3ET.
The event will begin at 6pm and run until approximately 8pm.
