Wrapped in Pride: Ghanaian Kente and African American Identity October 22 to November 23, 2008 Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature University of Richmond Museums Wrapped in Pride: Ghanaian Kente and African American Identity is on view October 22 through November 23, 2008 at the Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature, University of Richmond Museums. Kente cloth, made by the Asante peoples of Ghana and the Ewe peoples of Ghana and Togo, is the best known of all African textiles. Kente began as festive dress for special occasions and appeared in other important forms of regalia, including drums, shields, and fans. Over the past forty years, the cloth has been used on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. The exhibition bridges two continents, evoking and celebrating a shared cultural heritage and explores both the art and cultures of Africa and its expression of identity in African American communities. The exhibition explores kente weaving traditions through the display of extraordinary examples of historic and contemporary kente and numerous objects incorporating its patterns. Wrapped in Pride also considers how kente of the Asante and Ewe cultures came to be used throughout Africa as garment and ceremonial cloth.
Photographs and video depicting the use of kente in contexts ranging from religious to commercial illustrate how this traditional art form was transmitted across an ocean, and how it changed as it was embraced around the world as an expression of African cultural identity and pride, worn by such prominent people as W.E.B. Du Bois, Muhammad Ali, Spike Lee, and Nelson Mandela, among others. The final section of the exhibition focuses on the popularity of kente during the months of December, January and February, when the confluence of Christmas, Kwanzaa, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, and African American History Month prompts its wearing and/or display in a variety of forms, and in church and graduation ceremonies, when it symbolizes heritage, faith, and accomplishment. Organized by UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History, Los Angeles, California, and The Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey, and curated by Doran H. Ross, independent curator, the exhibition is circulated by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the On the Road program, and toured by ExhibitsUSA. The exhibition is made possible in part with a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the generous support of the University’s Cultural Affairs Committee. Programs - Tuesday, October 21, 2008, 7 to 9 p.m. 7 p.m., Lecture, Brown Alley Room, Weinstein Hall Kente Strip-Woven Cloth: Its Significance on Both Sides of the Atlantic, Babatunde Lawal, Professor of Art History, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond 8 to 9 p.m., Reception and preview of the exhibition Wrapped in Pride: Ghanaian Kente and African American Identity with African drumming performed by Olumide Gilbert, Kwabena Frompong, Iyinde Frompong, and Kofi Frompong Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature - Thursday, October 23, 2008, 4:30 to 7 p.m. Teacher Workshop, Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature Free workshop open to K-12 educators, co-hosted by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, in conjunction with the exhibition Wrapped in Pride: Ghanaian Kente and African American Identity To register, call Heather Campbell, Curator of Museum Programs, University of Richmond Museums, 804-287-6324, or email hcampbel@richmond.edu - Friday, November 21, 2008, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Lecture and performance, Brown Alley Room, Weinstein Hall The Talking-Drum Traditions of Ghana, Abdallah Zablong Zakariah, lecturer, Kwame Nkrumah Institute for African Studies, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra, and visiting artist-scholar, Department of Music, University of Richmond In conjunction with the exhibition Wrapped in Pride: Ghanaian Kente and African American Identity