This essay reflects on the exhibition When We See Us – A Century of Black Figuration in Painting at Kunstmuseum Basel, which brings together one hundred years of Black figurative painting. Written as part of the column Neulich im Museum, the text approaches the exhibition as a space of visual politics, self-representation, and affective encounter.

Rather than centring narratives of trauma or suffering, the essay examines how Black Joy is curated and made visible as a form of cultural presence and self-determination. Drawing on concepts of representation, gaze, and spatial arrangement, it explores how colour, exhibition design, and figurative painting produce moments of recognition, dialogue, and reflective seeing.

The text situates the exhibition within broader debates in visual culture and museum studies, paying particular attention to questions of Black visibility, audience positioning, and the ethics of looking in institutional spaces.