On Thursday (2 November), Art on the Underground launched is a new artwork by Jem Perucchini at Brixton Underground station.

The large public artwork, entitled Rebirth of a Nation, is the Italian’s first major commission. It will remain on display at the station for a year. Over twenty million journeys are made to and from the station each year.

Brixton is the southern terminus of London Underground‘s Victoria Line, and has the largest roundel logo on the network.

Since 2018, Brixton Underground station has hosted a series of artworks, which Transport for London (TfL) explains are commissioned to “respond to the diverse narratives of the area, in recognition of the local murals painted in Brixton in the 1980s”. Previous art in the series has been contributed by artists including Njideka Akunyili Crosby and Joy Labinjo.

Perucchini was born in Ethiopia but has been based in Italy since childhood. He is strongly influenced by Italian art history.

Perucchine’s artwork at Brixton station uses a distinctive smf detailed style of painting. It has a Early Renaissnance style, and portrays four figures, flanked by the arms of two others. The composition shows the past, represented by a female figure, and the future, her mirror image, meet. Either side of them are two men holding spears. Both of the women are brightly clothed, and one is clasping a purple orb (historically a symbol of sovereign power in painting iconography).

The fabrics are reminiscent of African wax cloth, a material which incorporates the skill, artistry and identities of the diverse African diaspora. The four figures are illuminated by the rays of a rising orange sun, and are situated in an environment which has warm colours, irregular perspective and what TfL describes as “a meditational quality that is evocative of a Renaissance altarpiece”.

TfL goes on to argue that “For this new work Perucchini maintains a strong connection to his practice, focussing on the active role of Western art history in the construction of archetypes. Certain representative figures dominate the art historical canon, and traditionally hold distinct positions in the social and symbolic hierarchy. Mining for overlooked narratives, Perucchini’s compositions are both familiar and enigmatic, and reimagine how the fantasies of the past can impact on the realities of the present.

“This work’s inspiration is drawn from the Ivory Bangle Lady, the name given to the occupant of an ancient grave dated to around the 4th century. The Ivory Bangle Lady was of North African origin; her grave was found in York. The stone grave contained rare, imported objects and valuable jewellery, one of which was an elephant ivory bangle. These objects indicate that she was amongst the richest inhabitants of the region and enjoyed a high social status. Other archaeological finds also support the theory that African people had a place in the upper echelons of Roman society, suggesting that early Britain may have been more ethnically diverse than mainstream history suggests. Perucchini’s reference to this rich cultural past underscores how history can be seen and interpreted from multiple viewpoints and charges the work with questions about the hierarchy of narratives, the construction of national identity and how some histories are privileged, whilst others are erased.

“Drawing from Brixton, one of London’s most distinctive areas, Perucchini’s work responds to an environment shaped by its diverse residents and their histories. As a nucleus for Black British history, the area has been shaped by recent social and political movements. In post-war London many West Indian immigrants settled in Brixton – almost a third who travelled on the Empire Windrush made it their home – and it quickly became a centre for the Black community. Perucchini’s work challenges the notion that Black British history stretches no further back than the 20th Century, celebrating the long lineage of Black Britons who came before and pointing towards an equally glorious future, set within a divine and timeless world.”

Artist Jem Perucchini said: “For me, Brixton represents a microcosm of London, a place where the community creates a local focus. The Underground station then acts as the main pivot between the centre and the periphery, the inside and the outside of the city.

“Working on this project has been very stimulating, not only for the opportunity to see my work reproduced in such a large format, but also because of its location in the heart of Brixton, visible by all its inhabitants and those who pass through it.”

Eleanor Pinfield, Head of Art on the Underground, said: “Jem Perucchini’s sublime work for Brixton Underground station presents an allegorical scene that resonates stylistically with the Early Renaissance, drawing us to a time when religious art played a central role in the everyday fabric of life. The artist’s technical skill in developing such a highly identifiable composition is supported by a conceptual desire to challenge the assumptions of Western art history in considering who is represented, what hierarchies are depicted and whose narrative is privileged. Speaking to the long thread of Black British history in the UK, “Birth of a Nation” continues Art on the Underground’s exploration of contemporary responses to muralism for Brixton station.”