Away from Africa

A new cultural institution is being created in New York City: the Africa Center, at the northern tip of Museum Mile on Fifth Avenue. Originally, New York had the Museum for African Art; its first location was in Soho. In 2007, Mayor Bloomberg announced a plan to relocate the museum to Museum Mile at 110th Street in Manhattan; during construction, the museum was moved to Long Island City in Queens. For several years, information about the new venue was scarce. Susan Mullin Vogel founded the Museum for African Art in 1984. The institution showed very high-caliber exhibitions, including exhibitions that were shown in various museums around the United States; it had a wonderful museum store (managed for some years by Vickie Fremont , whom we have also written about in this blog); my spouse, Epee Ellong , had participated in events about African culture and design. The project for the space at 110th Street and Fifth Avenue was enormously ambitious. In October 2012, Phil Conte joined...

Twitter is different for different people who use it. For some, it is a pure source of information; they rarely participate in the conversation. For me, Twitter resembles a big cocktail party, where you enter and exit at will, and meet interesting and wonderful people if you make an effort. TMS Ruge One of the people I "tweet-met" is TMS Ruge (@TMSRuge). I had no idea who he was, except that he was from an African country and seemed interesting. I didn't even know what his real name was. In September 2013, I noticed that he appeared to be in New York City to speak at a couple of conferences--so I tweeted to him, and we were able to meet in person for a cup of coffee and some conversation.  Later I sent him a few questions, which he graciously responded to. TMS Ruge--also known as Teddy--was born in Uganda, and raised in Kenya and in the United States. He trained as a communications professional, and works in graphic design, photography and social media consulting. ...

A photo gallery of new African puppets by Vickie Frémont, representing various regions and fabrics in the continent. Indigo Mudcloth Baule woven cloth Bazin fabric Korhogo fabric The puppets are to be shown at the upcoming SIRA event at the Maison de l'Afrique in Montreal, Canada, on November 7, 8 and 9, 2013. Vickie will be holding three workshops on Saturday, November 9. Maison de l'Afrique: 6256 Henri-Julien, Montreal - for more information: tel. 514-701-1433.

The word "toubab" means "white person" in Wolof, a language spoken in Senegal, and also in Bambara (Mali). Why use this term for the name of this accessories company? Because Maud Villaret, the head designer, is a toubab herself; Toubab Paris brings two worlds together, and symbolozes the back and forth between the continents. I was attracted by her whimsical designs, and curious to find out how she came about creating African themed accessories... Maud in NYC Born and raised in France,  Maud attended a well-known design school, the Ecole Duperré , majoring in textile arts. During her last year in school, she traveled to Mali for an Indigo workshop. Indigo dye is a natural dye, from the plant   Indigofera tinctoria  - it is written that the dye was first widely used in India (ancient Phoenicia used a similar color that came from a rock snail, the Murex). Nowadays, Indigo is still widely used in Western Africa, in countries such as Guinea, Senegal and Mali. ...

In Cameroon, as in other Sub-Saharan African countries, barbershops used to have painted signs showing several haircut styles. At some point the museum world started paying attention and suddenly these signs were popping up in museum stores. The last two times I was in Cameroon I realized the signs weren't being used anymore, and in fact had pretty much disappeared. Nowadays there is either just one style shown, or photos are used rather than a painting. It was quite a disappointment! Barbershop in Kekem, West Cameroon In the United States, barbershop signs sightings include a restaurant in Cambrisge, Massachusetts, Green Street, where they are used as decor. Barbershop signs at Green Street Restaurant (photos: Sami Ellong) Other links to posts on this subject: http://www.anotherafrica.net/interviews/township-barbershops-signs-of-south-africa

"Gli" (Wall), 2010, at the beginning of the exhibition area, Brooklyn Museum What a life trajectory. El Anatsui's work is now featured in a retrospective at one of the United States' premier museums, the Brooklyn Museum :  Gravity and Grace: Monumental Works by El Anatsui , curated by Kevin Dumouchelle. El Anatsui has been shown at New York City's contemporary African art galleries since over 20 years, such as Skoto Gallery and the  Contemporary African Art  gallery. The first pieces I had seen, in the 1990s, and admired, were made of wood, and I still have a Newark Museum postcard I held on to since 2007. Several years ago, both Skoto Gallery and the Contemporary African Art Gallery staged a double exhibit of El Anatsui's new metal work, which is the art that finally made him famous worldwide, at the age of sixty! "Amewo" (People) - 1998, modified 2010 The art  was so wonderful to behold that we all wanted a piece, even though none of ...