“Spike Lee: Creative Sources” at the Brooklyn Museum is a spectacular exploration of Lee’s inspiration and genius. It highlights Lee’s unique position in American culture through Black history, sports, his upbringing and many tributes to Brooklyn. The exhibit boasts over 450 items from Lee’s personal collection. Most of the items have been on display in the office of Lee’s production company, 40 Acres and a Mule, or in Lee’s homes, but now have been organized into seven themed rooms within the exhibit. Kimberli Gant, the exhibit’s curator, expertly captures the intersections between Lee’s films and the history and cultural context that inspired them.
The exhibit opens with a room entitled “Black History & Culture.” The bright red walls are lined with photographs of Marcus Garvey, a flag for the African National Congress signed by Nelson and Winnie Mandela and the monumental photograph of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X featured in “Do the Right Thing.” An excerpt of Lee’s key film “Malcolm X” that plays on the wall features Fordham alumnus Denzel Washington as Malcolm X. In this scene, Malcolm X lectures an audience in Harlem on “the United States government’s long history of manipulating and exploiting Black Americans.” Lee also displays a plethora of often first edition or signed books by Black authors such as James Baldwin and Langston Hughes. Lee notes that one of the most influential books in his collection is “The Autobiography of Malcolm X.” He recalls reading the book in middle school and its impact on him: “It changed everything – the way I thought, the way I felt, the way I viewed the world. It made everything clear for me.”
Lee is notoriously one of the New York Knicks’ most dedicated fans, so it is no surprise there is an entire room dedicated to Knicks game-worn and signed jerseys as well as the net from the Knicks’ first NBA title in 1970. Another room is dedicated to sports and features a section dedicated to Jackie Robinson, a signed pair of Michael Jordan’s shoes (with an apology for beating Lee’s beloved Knicks) and a signed Colin Kaepernick jersey.
Lee’s love for cinema is represented in a bright green room full of movie memorabilia.
Many directors Lee admired as a child through New York University film school have signed their movie posters to Lee, framed in floor-to-ceiling rows. The French poster for one of Lee’s favorite films, “On the Waterfront,” is signed by Elia Kazan and Budd Schulberg, and “The Godfather” poster and its sequel are signed “To Spike” by Francis Ford Coppola. Lee’s cinematic innovation has placed him among the greatest filmmakers of all time. Also in this room are Lee’s two Oscars, one for best adapted screenplay for “BlacKkKlansman” and a lifetime achievement award. Despite having five Oscar nominations, he didn’t win a film-specific Academy Award until 2019.
Although it is a bit of a trek from Fordham’s Rose Hill campus to Brooklyn, this exhibit more than makes up for it. “Spike Lee: Creative Sources” at the Brooklyn Museum is a must-see before it closes on Feb. 4, 2024.
