The Fourth Plinth

The fourth plinth in Trafalgar square is occupied by a succession of works which are chosen through public consultation and plays an important role in bringing contemporary art and debate to millions for free.

Antelope by Samson Kambalu is the present sculpture that occupies the plinth. 

It restages a photograph of Baptist preacher and pan-Africanist John Chilembwe and European missionary John Chorley as a sculpture.

The photograph was taken in 1914 at the opening of Chilembwe's new church in Myasaland, now Malawi. Chilembwe has his hat on, defyhing the colonial rule that forbade Africans from wearing hats in front of white people. A year later, le hed an uprising against colonial rule. Chilembwe was killed and his church was destroyed by the colonial police.

 On the plinth, Chilembwe is larger than life, while Chorley is life-size. By increasing his scale, the artist elevates Chilembwe and his story, revealing the hidden narratives of underrepresented peoples in the history of the British Empire in Africa, and beyond.