Africa Now! Contemporary Art by African Women
Curated by Kali McMillan
February 4 – 25, 2018
Opening Reception
Sunday, February 4, 2018
2-4 pm
Saturday, February 17 1-3:30
gallery walk and panel discussion on women shaping contemporary African art
with the artists, curator and guest speaker Curlee Holton
Closing Reception
Sunday, February 25, 2018
1 – 3:30
The artist Ritah Nabuyngo Edopu will attend the closing reception to talk about her work and the African contemporary art scene.
The first international women artists exhibit at Ellarslie showcases the talents of four contemporary women artists influencing the art of Africa today.
Ugandans Ritah Nabuyungo and Lilane Nabulime, Rwandan Durhiwe Rushemeza, and Mercy Moyo from Zimbabwe all come from countries of recent conflict. Uganda has struggled to build a peaceful society since the days of Idi Amin. Although Rwanda still struggles with Human Rights issues, the nation has stabilized since the 1994 Rwanda Genocide, and, in fact draws tourists from around the world to see the mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. On the other hand, Zimbabwe’s new president has been in charge for only one year and is still working to consolidate his power and put his country onto a sound economic path forward. Using vibrant colors, traditional African motifs, abstraction, and collage, the artists in this exhibit reveal the spirit of their nations in personal ways. Their paintings and sculpture provide insight into their views on culture, politics, and society.
For this exhibit, curator Kali McMillan has selected works by these artists from the collection of Diana Tyson, a frequent traveler to Africa, who has been collecting the works of these artists for years. Ms. Tyson has been working with these women to bring exposure to their works in the United States. She works personally with each artist to understand their work and represent it to the public. Through her efforts these women have had several exhibits in this country and aboard and this is a first for Ellarslie. These artists represent trends in contemporary African art.
This is the second exhibition Ms. McMillan has curated for Ellarslie. Her exhibition in 2015 highlighted African American artists in private collections of local African American women. According to Ms. McMillan the works in this exhibition are varied in style and give the viewer a fresh and powerful sampling of the Contemporary African Art scene. Ms. McMillan holds a Master’s degree in Modern and Contemporary Art History and currently works as the manager of the art department at an online auction house.
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