[hip-hop music playing]
♪ One, two, one, two, free ♪
♪ Where Brooklyn at? Where Brooklyn at? ♪
[jazz music playing]
♪ There's a girl that I once knew ♪
♪ Who often had a friend a friend or two ♪
♪ She gave them time, love of wit and rhyme ♪
♪ Sublime ♪
♪ They would come from far away ♪
♪ And often gather there all day ♪
♪ To show their love And see which one would stay ♪
The Darling clan never made it out to the black Mecca of Oak Bluffs.
Stokes didn't care to socialize with what he called...
High-yella, high-siddity,
upper-middle, ass-acting,
wannabe-talented-tenth,
Jack-and-Jill,
summer-vacation-going,
no-dirt-under-their-nails,
having-paper-bag-test,
taking-fur-coat- in-the-summertime-wearing,
thinking-that-they-better-than-us,
regular-ass-Negro Negros.
Ain't that some shit?
[Nola] Can you believe it?
In just one hour, we'll be in the Martha's Vineyard.
Nation Time, here we come.
Ten thousand Gs, here we come.
Studio space, fresh air,
and hot clandestine hook-ups, here you come.
- Hook-ups? What? - Yeah. I mean, we work,
but Nation Time is for the fine and fucking.
[chuckles]
Not this week.
I'm just blessed to get out of Brooklyn and away from Opal, you know?
I feel like I can still smell her skin.
You know what they say:
the best way to get over someone is to get on your art game.
Literally no one says that!
- It's a thing. - It's not a thing.
[both laugh]
[Dutch] I've been thinking about adding all this nature to my work
by using, like, raw materials or something.
- Yeah. - Yeah. What are you gonna do?
Well, I told you I'm trying to mount this solo show this summer.
But I have no idea what the theme is gonna be yet,
so I'll probably try to figure that out.
But at the very least, I'm gonna explore the vineyard.
Okay, but we came here to work, so you can always like,
- come back to the vineyard. - I know, but it's Martha's Vineyard!
[both chuckle]
- [Nola] Yeah? - [Dutch] You gotta hide it, though.
From the scavengers.
- Wow, is this it? - Yeah.
[Dutch] Nation Time, the black artist Shangri-La-La-La.
[Nola] Yes!
[Mr. Cuddy] Aha.
- Hello, ladies. - Hi.
Ebon Cuddy, Nation Time program director. Welcome.
And welcome back, Dutch.
[both women] Hi!
[Dutch] Mr. Cuddy, another amazing tie.
[Nola] It's true.
- I'm Nola Darling. - Yes.
I know all of Nation Time's retreat fellows.
Lots of repellent,
pinot grigio, and no red meat, am I right?
[Dutch] Facts!
[Mr. Cuddy] Now, this is your first time in Martha's Vineyard, if I'm not mistaken.
- [Nola] It is. - [Mr. Cuddy] And how do you like it?
[Nola] It's really beautiful here.
[Mr. Cuddy] Mm.
We have provided for you here 55 acres
of the most lush and creative land that we could find.
We want to inspire these young minds. Hm?
[Nola chuckles]
Well, I feel inspired already.
Your quarters.
Okay.
[sighs]
Well?
It is...
perfect.
Remember, we're not here to seek perfection.
We're only here to seek truth.
- [Dutch] Hi. - [Mr. Cuddy] Taking in the memories?
- [Dutch] Indeed. - [Mr. Cuddy] Indeed.
[all chuckle]
What has Dutch told you about her time here?
Well, I just remember when she came back
with all this
fucking stunning...
next-level work.
It had a huge impact on Dutch.
Okay, and what are you looking for?
I don't know. I just feel like I'm...
I'm more open now.
So I'm trying to remain... open?
- This was the perfect time to hear that... - Yeah?
...because I've saved the best for last.
Hmm?
This is your solitary space to create.
All mine?
Some fellows stay holed up in here the entire time, but...
these seven days are yours.
Free from the distractions of the outside,
a safe environment with which to play with all of your muses.
This is phenomenal.
I'm gonna move in here.
Well, I look forward to what you have to create here, Nola.
Thank you.
I'll leave you to it.
[upbeat music playing]
Yes.
[Dutch] Welcome to Nation Time.
[Nola] You're the welcoming committee?
[Dutch] Oh, I'm official. It's my second year.
- I say it's me. - That's true.
- Yes. - 'Sup with this guy?
[Dutch laughs]
Oh, boy.
- Thank you. - Thank you.
Can you believe five years ago
we were toiling in sketch pads and paints at Pratt?
And now we are here with the masters.
Look.
Even Re.Mark.Able,
king of the insta-ratti-ti-ti-ti-ti-ti-ti art hacks, is here.
Good for him.
All ages, all disciplines, all backgrounds, all black.
I don't know how I got here, but I'm all in.
[Dutch] And by the way, scrumptious crumpets and trumpets over there.
- [Dutch] He's single. - [Nola] That's fine.
[Dutch] Ain't he? If I were single and not in a loving relationship.
- [chuckles] - He's looking at you, too.
- [Nola] So what? I am here to work. - No, thank you.
[Dutch] Preeta, my gallerist, reps him too.
I'll introduce you at our portfolio showing.
Oh, you mean the portfolio showing that I completely forgot about?
That's cool. It's cool. It's cool. It's cool.
Tomorrow, I am ready and inspired to get to work.
- Good. But for tonight, Olu! - Oh, wow.
- Oh, you are trash. - Just saying welcome.
[Nola] I just have not been single for over two years.
[Dutch] It's like riding a bike, I heard. You've got this. Get it together. Go.
- Dutch. - [Dutch] Hi.
- So good to see you, love. - Good to see you.
- How's your work coming along? - Good.
Yeah, I think I'm gonna add all this, like, nature to my work.
- This is my Brooklyn bud, Nola Darling. - Nice to meet you, Olu.
It's nice to meet you, Nola.
- Olu makes sculptures. - Out of cow dung.
You know my work?
Mm-hmm.
You use cow dung to reflect the prickly relationship between the black male visage
and the white gaze's disgust and enticement of it.
Aha.
You da shit.
Clever.
I'm just gonna go check this patch of grass over there.
[Nola scoffs]
I... The wind is, like, coming this way
and you smell really good.
What is that? Is that eucalyptus and lavender or...
- It's black soap. - Oh.
[Olu chuckles]
Clears all that crap up.
- Literally. - [Nola laughs]
And what do you work in?
Oils.
More recently, photography.
Whatever mediums call out to me.
What's calling your name these days?
What is this? The Inquisition? I have a week to figure that out.
- True. - [Nola scoffs]
Well, once you're inspired...
let me know.
Will do.
Cheers.
Focus.
Focus, Nola. Focus.
Hi, Nola.
[Mr. Cuddy] Thank you! [clapping]
Good black geniuses and our generous patrons at large, thank you.
- And welcome to... - [all] Nation Time!
Yes.
Our amazing talents, you...
you have been chosen
to explore your work here.
Here, without the outside pressure to define your work
through the limited prism of race.
Now, I pray you all use your time here wisely.
Let me introduce to you
Nation Time's largest benefactor,
Mr. Dean Haggin.
[clapping]
[Mr. Cuddy] Yes.
Dean.
Thank you, Ebon Cuddy, my soldier in the struggle.
- Boom. - Boom!
Thank you, sisters.
Thank you, brothers.
I would just like to say that there is no greater cause to support
than the artistic expression of the black artist.
[Mr. Cuddy applauds] Amen.
Which, can we all agree, is the last great bastion of black resistance
to white supremacy.
Yeah. [applauding alone]
But y'all don't need me to tell y'all the real deal.
What y'all need is Nation Time.
- [Mr. Cuddy] Nation Time! - [all] Nation Time!
- Uhuru. - Uhuru!
[awkward silence]
Yes.
- [Nola] What the hell was that? - [Mr. Cuddy] Dean Haggin, everybody.
[woman] Haggin's coming over here.
- What? - Enjoy!
[woman] Coming for you, girl.
Perv alert. We out.
- Come on. - We gotta go.
Good luck.
Bye, Nola.
What's up, Nola?
I just wanted to congratulate you
on being selected for the retreat this year.
I can't wait to see what you're gonna create
in this Eden of black solitude and intelligence.
You all right?
That's all right, sis. I know. I...
I tend to overwhelm.
[inhales deeply] Dutch!
[panting]
Oh, God.
All right, okay, breathe. Breathe.
["Hold Your Head Up" playing]
Okay, drink this.
Breathe.
What... the fuck is he doing here?
What the fuck is he doing here?
I don't know.
Mmm...
Mm-hmm.
[no audible dialogue]
♪ Hold your head up, oh ♪
♪ Hold your head up ♪
♪ Hold your head up, oh ♪
[Nola] Bitch, who are you about to burn at the stake?
[laughs]
I popped up at the crack of dawn with an idea.
Use wood, like actual sticks, to create dimension.
Like! Like, like, like, like.
Being here, you know, just... Shit just flows, you know?
I do not know. That sounds great.
Feel like that run-in with Dean kinda blocked me.
Well, don't let it.
You said you've got work to do, right?
Yeah. You're right.
I think I'm gonna grab one of these Nation Time bikes
and head on over to Oak Bluffs and try to awaken the muses.
All right.
Well, don't stay out too late. See you at dinner, right?
Thanks, Mom. [both chuckle]
May I take your picture?
Sure.
Y'all look like goddesses.
- [laughter] Thank you! You look beautiful. - Thank you.
["Walking In Rhythm" playing]
♪ I'm walking in rhythm ♪
♪ Singing my song ♪
♪ Thinking 'bout my baby ♪
♪ Trying to get home ♪
♪ It's been so long... ♪
- [man] Hello! - Hello.
- How are y'all today? - Good.
We're blessed. How about you?
I'm a little thirsty.
- Could I trouble you for a glass of water? - [woman] Sure.
I'm Joseph Petiport and this is my wife of about a hundred years,
Mrs. Myra Petiport. [chuckles]
It's nice to meet you both.
- You've never been to Oak Bluffs? - Nope.
Well, blacks and Oak Bluffs, we had humble beginnings,
but we sure made it something.
The first blacks to come here worked as indentured servants
for white vacationers.
Then black whalers came in and out of the town.
Then, after World War II, old Adam Clayton Powell came.
And he put the word out in the black papers, said "Come!"
Oak Bluffs was a place a Negro could feel like a man.
[Myra] And a woman.
[Joseph] And so we came. [both laugh]
I think I've taken up enough of your time.
I should get going. I'm trying to catch the sunset at Menemsha Beach.
I hear it's amazing.
[Joseph] That's all the way up the island. It'll take you a month of Sundays
to get there that way.
You might as well hitch a ride.
♪ I'm tired and so all alone ♪
♪ I've traveled so very far ♪
♪ I've got to get back home ♪
♪ Got to get back home ♪
♪ Walking in rhythm ♪
- ♪ Moving in sound... ♪ - [birds chirping]
My name's Carrie Mae Weems, and this piece is called The Shape of Things.
My name is Tatyana Fazlalizadeh,
and the name of my piece is You're the nigger, baby. It isn't me.
And Lady Liberty.
My name is Tschabalala Self and my piece is Milk Chocolate.
My name is Doreen Garner and my piece is Saartjie's Triangle.
My name is LaToya Ruby Frazier,
and these are my pieces from Flint is Family series.
My name is Titus Kaphar,
and this is my piece, Seeing Through Time.
Yeah, my name is Re.Mark.Able.
That's Re, dot, Mark, dot Able. And this is my piece, Duality.
Yeah.
My name is Juliana Huxtable and my piece is called Transexual Empire.
My name is Amy Sherald and this painting is called
She Always Believed the Good In Those She Loved.
[Olu] I have to ask, because it's such amazing work,
tell us the story of how you, um,
got to do the beautiful piece of Mrs. Obama.
I won the National Portrait Gallery competition,
and they gave the Obamas a portfolio of 21 artists to choose from.
Um, they shortlisted me to five.
I went to the White House and interviewed with her and Barack
and I found out two months later she chose me to paint her.
What's really interesting about it is
how it fits in this long history of portraiture.
There are not a lot of black images in the National Portrait Gallery.
And there are nothing painted the way you painted that, right, for sure.
And so, you walk in and all of a sudden it hits you in the face, it stands out.
It's like, "You have to notice me.
I don't give a fuck if you like me, but you have to notice me." [all laugh]
[indie music starts playing]
Snacks, oh, snacks!
[loud moaning in the other room]
[moaning continues]
[Nola chuckles]
Hmm!
[moaning continues]
[door closes]
[Dutch] I included dimension and texture, especially here,
so you can feel the fluidity, the motion of the human tissue,
inspired by Henrietta Lacks,
the HeLa cells, and her non-consensual contribution to science.
And yet, the continuity of her gift grows.
I feel that, Dutch, it's very potent.
Thank you.
- [man] Impressive. - Thank you.
I want you to meet a friend of mine. Her name is Nola Darling.
- We went to school together. - All right.
She's great stuff. Yeah.
Where does she live?
Brooklyn. Yeah.
- Local. - Yeah, she is. She's really great.
- Excellent. - Yeah.
So, really it's my interpretation of me right now.
An unsung black female voice.
Self-portraiture.
Self portrait of a young artist.
Really it's more of an experiment, you know...
a work-in-progress, that kind of thing.
- No. - [Dutch] Hey.
Nola, this is my rep, Preeta Shankar.
Hi. Nola Darling.
- Lovely to meet you. - Lovely to meet you as well.
Shall we get some wine?
Yeah.
[woman laughs]
- Hi. - Hi.
I'm Carrie, Carrie Mae Weems.
I love you.
I don't know you. I...
I love your work and you...
know my name.
I do, absolutely.
This is... This is not my best work.
I got a little distracted this week, but...
Yeah.
- It's not easy, right? - No.
Being here with all these prolific artists,
this amazing work. I mean...
But I am a little better than this.
No, you're good.
You know I'm on the Board with Creative Capital.
I was on that panel and I put your name forward. I vouched for you.
- You did? - Absolutely.
I loved the samples.
I saw something in the work that I thought was amazing
and fresh and innovative, which is the thing that I'm looking for.
And you should have made it to the second round.
- You didn't, but you should have. - That's very generous.
And so the moment that, you know,
I had this opportunity to think about Nation Time,
I thought, well, I have to invite Nola.
So, you're here.
Enjoy it.
That's really generous of you. Sorry if I'm a massive disappointment.
You're not a disappointment at all.
You are here.
And enjoy every minute of it.
Be here, be present, and do this work, make this work.
Okay.
[Nola chuckles]
- You're fabulous. - Thank you.
- Beautiful. And you look fabulous. - It's the only thing I got right.
I love it.
- It's hot! - [laughs]
Thank you.
Have a great, great time.
- Peace. I'll see you later. Okay. - Okay.
[soft music playing]
Between Titus and Tatiana, I am undone.
- Thank you. - You're welcome.
How's it going for you?
It's good, but tense.
I figured it was time for a drink or fresh air.
- Fresh air is good. - Mm.
Walk with me to the beach.
Okay.
[Olu] I've been here three times. I've never shown my work.
I don't want it interrupting my process.
I come to be with the work, not to be with other people's opinions of it.
[Olu chuckles]
I guess it is my signature style.
Though I never meant for it to be a commentary on the fear of blackness.
Well, I'm clear. I make work for my people, you know?
I want to have the impact of Kerry James Marshall.
I want black folks to see my work and feel loved.
Black Americans get so caught up speaking to and for each other.
And what's wrong with that?
It seems constricting, no?
I mean, it's our binding.
Black folks in America are bound together, you know?
The history of how we got here and being here made it so.
Why do you think we need a separate space on an island
for black artists to begin with?
I don't know.
- But I love the cuisine. - I'm for real.
You know we can't be black out there and not feel it.
[Nola] I wonder if my dad was right, if we should have just
been separated and left things alone, you know?
[Olu] And not fight for integration?
Bloody hell, Nola.
I'm just saying, at one point we had our own great businesses that we owned.
Yeah, but theirs were better.
Because of white supremacy. And then we thought we could, what, integrate
into these racist institutions and turn out okay?
It's the only way to level the playing field.
There's no such thing as a black planet, Nola.
Like, what the fuck is Dean Haggin doing here?
[Olu] I think you're the only one who cares where the money's coming from.
Really?
Yeah.
But it might also be what makes you so damn special.
- [Nola] It rubbed off a little bit? - [Dutch] It did, it rubbed off on me.
Ladies and gentlemen, my good black geniuses, yes.
It is invigorating to have you all collected here in our gathering space
one last time.
Our artists, their light, their work,
their passion has inspired us all.
Let's give them a round of applause, shall we?
[cheering and applause]
Absolutely.
And now, let's all take our seats
and have one final celebratory meal together.
To Nation Time!
- [all] Nation Time! - [Mr. Cuddy] Yes!
Eat, drink, be merry, please.
[indistinct chatter]
I love that they know what kind of wine I love, you know what I mean?
[Dutch] I know.
- Full bodied? - Full bodied.
[clinking]
Excuse me, everyone.
I'd like to take a moment to shout out our patron,
Mr. Dean Haggin.
Or as I've unfortunately come to know him,
Onyx.
Onyx is a man who not only appropriates black culture,
but defaces the work of black women artists,
namely my very personal, My Name Isn't campaign.
[Nola] He's a hack, a fucking fraud.
So how does someone like Onyx even come to Nation Time?
The infamous poet Amiri Baraka would be turning over in his grave.
If it's Nation Time, then what the fuck are you doing here?
[Nola] What, just because you foot the bill?
You think you can buy us?
Nope! Come on, guys!
Join me in tossing out this succubus trash.
It's time to get together.
It's time to make one strong, black energy space.
It's Nation Time! It's Nation Time!
Come on!
- It's Nation Time! - [awkwardly] It's Nation Time...
[Dean chuckles nervously]
Now, I think what the sister means to say
is that I do not deface artwork.
I deface white folks' property.
I plastered "G" all over Brooklyn
to scare whitey from gentrifying black and brown spaces.
Know what I mean?
For reals.
On my dead moms.
Who is not really dead,
but she don't recognize my Nubian wife and my mixed-race child,
so she's dead to me.
And that's dead ass.
Know what I mean?
And I would like to say one more thing:
There's so much division
and friction and...
problems in the world.
And I just feel like, you know, racism...
Pah! It could get the bozak.
I have a story that actually pertains to this matter
that I would like to share with y'all.
See, my great-grandfather,
he died in the Holocaust.
Yeah.
He got drunk and fell out the guard tower.
It's sad.
But, even generations later,
it hurts.
It leaves a very emotional
boo-boo
inside me.
And I just wanted to share that, 'cause...
it's Nation Time.
Thank you. Know what I mean?
[Mr. Cuddy] Nola...
Darling, I enjoyed your performance.
That was... bold.
I like bold.
Stay in touch.
I can show you one of my favorite integrated spots.
[scoffs]
- Integrate this pussy. - Yeah! [laughs]
- You did good, real good. - Mm-hmm.
Uh-oh. Dean, 12 o'clock.
Dutch, right?
- Aha... That's me. - Powerful work, my sister.
Bigger, blacker, and uncut?
Mind if I have a minute with Nola?
Nola, you good?
Yeah, girl, I'm good.
I'm gonna be right over there.
- Nola. - G for gentrification, huh?
I should've known that was you.
You know my friend Divine spent 18 months in jail for that shit?
My bad.
Nola, I'm sorry if you misunderstood my being at Nation Time.
I just wanted to help the cause.
You know what, sis?
I thought what you said was really on point.
- You did? - No dis, now.
Matter of fact, I was so inspired by what you said,
I thought...
"She shouldn't have to take this cracker's money."
So, I'm gonna donate your $10,000 stipend
to the strong black soul sisters at Spelman College.
'Cause, you know,
a mind is a terrible thing to waste.
Peace and love, sis.
Ashay.
- Later, my sister. - For real?
[piano music playing]
Here, let me get that for you.
- Thank you. - I'll take your bag, too.
There is nothing that's more important than art.
Art is the basis of our deepest humanity,
and it's through that that we articulate our deepest concerns,
our deepest beliefs,
and our most profound ideas about who we are.
And not only are these amazing young artists
dealing with notions of social justice
as the core of the work,
they're also extraordinary artists of invention.
In 1984, at a lecture,
I heard the president of Bank of America give a talk,
and it was on the changing demographics
that were going to be affecting this country.
And he said something like, by the year 2020, 2025 or so,
that this would be a country that would be primarily
a majority minority country.
And now here we are,
some 30-some-odd years later,
where this extraordinary tide,
this extraordinary shift is indeed finally in the making
for all to see.
I think that there's something dynamic that's going on,
something extraordinary that's going on, something powerful that's going on.
And the ways in which artists are articulating this
is also really incredible for this moment.