In California, giant panels display the work of African American Tire Nichols, beaten to death by the police
The giant photos of Tire Nichols have been on display since March 4, 2023 around Palm Springs, just over 150 km east of Los Angeles, as part of Desert X, an art exhibition. AFP/Valerie Macon
These installations have been visible since Saturday near Palm Springs, some 150 km east of Los Angeles, as part of Desert Xan outdoor art exhibition.
In the California desert, photographs of steel bridges and starkly beautiful sunsets are displayed on large billboards alongside a dusty highway. The author of these works is Tire Nichols, a 29-year-old African-American amateur photographer, whose the fatal beating by police officers in the southern United States early January shocked America.
The panels have been on official display since Saturday around Palm Springs, just over 150km east of Los Angeles, as part of Desert X, an art exhibition known for its giant outdoor installations. These are often filled with political messages, against the backdrop of the impressive landscape of the arid mountains of the region.
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“Most of us know Tire through his tragic and brutal death at the hands of law enforcement in Memphis. What we may not know are the introspections he gave on his life through his art“, declared during a press conference the artistic director of the festival, Neville Wakefield.
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Tire Nichols, who grew up in California before moving to Tennessee, was a photography enthusiast whose images featured bridges, murals, neon lights, and fiery sunsets. In his adopted city, Memphis, he explored the relationships between people and their environment.
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Beaten to death for a traffic offense
For the organizers of the exhibition, the choice to install his photos at the edge of a road was deliberate. Tire Nichols, 29, was arrested on January 7 by agents from a special unit in Memphis, Tennessee, who accused him of a traffic violation. Beaten so badly that he became unrecognizable according to his mother, he died three days later in hospital.
The family of Tyre Nichols, who only agreed to the facility days before it was to be unveiled, hope they will shed light on a California bill that would limit police powers in in terms of roadside checks.
The late addition of Tire Nichols’ artwork to Desert X is meant to introduce him “as an artist, to show his work, and to make people react emotionallywith his works, festival founder Susan Davis told AFP. Established six years ago, Desert X invites artists from around the world to visit the area around Palm Springs and create new work for installation in the Coachella Valley.
The works, exhibited for free from March 4 to May 7, are scattered across the valley, transforming the experience into a kind of “treasure hunt“, according to Susan Davis. In addition to the issue of social justice, several of the projects this year address water shortages, environmental degradation and the climate crisis.
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