2020's must-see projects by Black artists

Scene from Utopia Falls. Aliyah (Robyn Alomar) and Bohdi (Akiel Julien) perform “My Kin” (Boi-1da Ft. Nikhil Seetharam & The New Babyl Orchestra) for the citizens of New Babyl. (Courtesy of CBC)

Black Light is a weekly column by Governor General Award-winning writer Amanda Parris that spotlights, champions and challenges art and popular culture that is created by Black people and/or centres Black people.

I think it's fair to say that this new decade hasn't been off to the best start: threats of world war, catastrophic Australian bushfires, the devastation of the Iran plane crash, Prince Harry and Meghan "stepping back" from the Royal Family. OK, that last headline is more juicy than tragic — but put it all together, and the new decade feels like an inevitable continuation of the doom and gloom that defined the late 2010s. But I have something that may make the future look a little brighter.

I've curated a list of some of the most exciting projects created by Black artists that will be arriving in 2020. There are visual art exhibitions, plays, a new novel, an installation, a couple of films and new series. There's a lot coming down the pipeline, and even though my list's not comprehensive, it is a sneak peek into some of the work being created by Black Canadian and international artists.

Some additional good news: this roundup is the first chapter of my new professional project, Black Light. Black Light is a weekly column that will spotlight, champion and challenge art and popular culture that is created by Black people and/or centres Black people.

Why is this column important? Because from Mathieu da Costa to Aubrey Drake Graham, Black folks have long been translating, transforming and transgressing the Canadian landscape. Black Light will shine a focused and consistent light on those that do so through their art and examine them in conversation with the work being created by Black artists around the world.

The work created by Black artists often goes undocumented. It's a consistent and systemic problem in Canada — one that's created a cultural amnesia that renders Black art and Black artists invisible. Black Light is a small attempt to rectify this issue.

So without further ado, here is your sneak peek at the kind of creative projects Black Light will engage....