Kelowna Celebrates Yaw Obrenu Yamoah for Black History Month:
A Short Film Premiere and Art Talk


Kelowna, BC – Curator Trophy Ewila is excited to be celebrating Black History Month through the presentation of Yaw Obrenu Yamoah’s latest short film “Black Boys Don’t Cry”. A visual installation will be stationed on the RCA Commons field (in between the Rotary Centre for the Arts and the Kelowna Art Gallery) Friday, February 26th, 2021 from 6:00pm to 7:00pm.

The audience will be engaging with the piece through a youtube live stream that will feature an art talk with Yaw Obrenu Yamoah as well as premiere his short film.
Youtube link: https://youtu.be/OOXVTQEzAYQ

In “Black Boys Don’t Cry” a young boy is awakened - at 3:00am- to be told his cousin has died. As we hold the figures of Leroy and LaLa, the film goes on to explore mental health, suicide, loneliness, love and the expression of masculinity within the Black community. Interestingly, the film covertly speaks on how Black women are the anchor to the stability of Black men.

“The film is really a celebration of Black women” says Yaw, and features a special voice over of Venida Browder - mother to Kalief Browder.

The film features performance artist and actor Babaloluwa “Lolu” Oyedele as Leroy and Vancouver based actor and model Kaya Coleman as LaLa, both UBC Okanagan graduates.

“This year, given the fact that no major institutions in the Cultural District celebrated or acknowledged Black History Month, we took it upon ourselves to celebrate somebody that opened a lot of doors for us. We would like to use this opportunity to tell this story and to continue building a more inclusive environment in the Cultural District. There is a growing number of Black Artists within the city, and we would like to celebrate Yaw Obrenu Yamoah to encourage their participation in the wider public” - says Trophy Ewila.

Yaw Obrenu Yamoah embodies a Black history experience for us as young Black intellectuals interested in the language of Art. It is why we celebrate him.
The positioning of the visual installation in the Cultural District is to celebrate his major contribution to culture and inclusivity in Kelowna. It is also to highlight the disconnect between major institutions in the Cultural District and the Black Artist community in the city. We hope to use this moment to continue a conversation on matters of equity, diversity and inclusion within the Cultural District and in Kelowna at large.

We believe that with the commitment from major players within the Cultural District and in accordance with the 2020-2025 City of Kelowna Cultural Plan, art can lead the way in creating a model for resolving these issues. By allowing those whose voices are not normally heard space to express their humanity, we believe that the city will become a more inclusive space for Black people in general. It is important that we allow people to tell their own story. We are part of this community and want to express freely without having to take away others' freedoms. Yaw Obrenu Yamoah exemplified this well while in Kelowna.

To learn more about Yaw Obrenu Yamoah please visit : www.yawyamoah.com