Steve McQueen’s End Credits is an artistic representation of Paul Robeson’s FBI file from the McCarthy era. The exhibit is on the fifth floor of the Whitney, a huge, nearly empty room, aptly called Open-Space. From the second you step into the room, you are immersed in the piece. On both ends of the room are screens that stretch from ceiling to floor. Both display Robeson’s annotated files scrolling up the screen like credits as the title suggests. Voices of both men and women are reading the information from the files but they do not correspond with either screen. The information interrupts itself with frequent redactions, which are always read in a voice different from the rest of the content. It is nearly impossible to absorb all the information that is being spoken and displayed in front of you (and behind you) but that, of course, is intentional. Unfortunately, I had no prior knowledge of the exhibit or it’s history. Slowly, I began to piece things together. I caught dates like 1946 and 1961 and words like HUAC, confidential informant, pro-communist, and Hollywood. I heard the phrase, “The best country today to test the principles of Marxism might be America,” several times. I still did not know the exact focus of the piece but the tonal element was clear nonetheless. I did some research following my viewing of the exhibit and learned that not only did the FBI have nothing of substance in Robeson’s files, but also this investigation essentially ended his career. I also found out that the material loops around the six-hour mark. Knowing this information makes the piece so much stronger. It is difficult to gather all of the material from the narrations and both screens because it is irrelevant. The files are so extensive but no significant wrongdoing could ever be proven. The effects that this investigation had on Robeson’s career indicate the significance of the title. With all the background information that I now have, I would definitely like to go back and view it again.

Photograph by Matt Carasella, Whitney.org