Art of Africa: Objects from the Collection of Warren Robbins
Summary | Specifications | Tour Schedule | Images | Installations | Press | Checklist (PDF)
Art is central to life in traditional African societies. At every stage of the human life cycle, specially hand-crafted visual forms are used to fulfill spiritual and practical needs. Art forms are visual representations of certain deities and ancestral spirits, which serve as intermediaries between humans and the spiritual world. The 66 objects in this exhibition, including sculpture, textiles, beaded clothing and jewelry, broadly represents the creativity and diversity of artistic expression of 30 cultures of sub-Saharan Africa.
This exhibition provides museum education departments an opportunity for many interdisciplinary programs such as music, literature, craft-making, cultural studies and more. Museums are provided with copies of Discover Art of Africa—a family guide that highlights eight objects from the exhibition and includes activities children may complete in the museum and at home. Museums also receive interdisciplinary curricula to distribute to local schools. The curriculum emphasizes the peoples and cultures of Ghana, Cameroon, and South Africa.
This collection is from the Robbins Center for Cross Cultural Communication in Washington, DC. Warren Robbins, its founder and director, was also founder and director emeritus of the National Museum of African Art.
Art of Africa was funded in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, Washington, D.C.
Specifications:
| Number of Works: | 66 including sculptures, textiles, beaded clothing, jewelry and a film |
| Curator: | Kwaku Ofori-Ansa, associate professor of African Art History, Howard University, Washington, DC |
| Organized by: | The Robbins Center for Cross Cultural Communication, Washington, DC |
| Approximate size: | 2000 square feet with several objects to be wall hung |
| Security: | Limited security |
| Fee: | $6,500 |
| Reduced Fee: | Round trip shipping only For 8 weeks from December 2010 to March 2011 |
| Shipping: | Exhibitors pay outgoing costs within the contiguous US |
| Booking Time: | 8 weeks |
| Tour: | January 2007 - December 2013 |
| Availability: | December 2010 - March 2011 and April 2012- December 2013 |
| Contact: | Rachel Brocato |
Tour Schedule:
The College of Wooster Art Museum, Wooster, OH
January 16 2007 - March 05 2007
William Weston Clarke Emison Museum of Art at DePauw, Greencastle, IN
September 21 2007 - December 07 2007
Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park, Grand Rapids, MI
January 18 2008 - May 18 2008
Ruthmere Museum, Elkhart, IN
May 31 2008 - September 4 2008
Huntington Museum of Art, Huntington, WV
October 03 2008 - December 29 2008
Meredith Gallery, Virginia State University, Petersburg, VA
February 6 2009 - March 22 2009
The Haggin Museum, Stockton, CA
April 26 2009 - July 19 2009
Pensacola Museum of Art, Pensacola, FL
August 07 2009 - October 04 2009
Evansville Museum of Art, History, and Science, Evansville, IN
January 17 2010 - March 14 2010
Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery, Keene State College, Keene, NH
September 1, 2010 - October 27, 2010
Howard University Gallery of Art, Howard Universtiy, Washington, DC
September 5, 2011 - November 28, 2011
Summary | Specifications | Tour Schedule | Images | Installations | Press
