Art from Tanzania

March 18, 2017 to August 06, 2017

The eastern African country of Tanzania is often overlooked in surveys of African art, and its objects are not well-represented in American collections. This has led some scholars to suggest that Tanzania does not have a history of art, but as this exhibition demonstrates, this is simply not true. Drawn from the noted collection of Keith Achepohl, Art from Tanzania features 21 objects, from pottery to ritual objects, created from clay, wood, cloth, and beads. The works reveal their different uses, from containers for beer or water to containers of the divine, and the ways in which their creators have transformed humble materials into objects of visual beauty and power.

Art from Tanzania was organized by Johanna G. Seasonwein, Senior Curator of Western Art, in collaboration with Doris Payne, professor of linguistics and director of the African Studies Program, and Melissa Graboyes, assistant professor of African and medical history in the Robert H. Clark Honors College. The exhibition and a related lecture are supported by a JSMA Academic Support Grant.

Related program:

“Visual Literacy in Uganga: “Reading” Imagery of Health and Illness in Northeastern Tanzania,” a lecture by Dr. Barbara Thompson, independent art historian, curator and consultant. Friday, May 5, 2017, 12 p.m., JSMA.