Of Cloth and Culture: African Textiles from the Norma Canelas and William D. Roth Collection.

Of Cloth and Culture: African Textiles from the Norma Canelas and William D.

Roth Collection

Orlando Museum of Art, Orlando, FL

July 21, 2007-July 6, 2008

Where Symbols Meet: A Celebration of West African Achievement Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Canada ongoing

"Of Cloth and Culture" is the eighth in a series of exhibitions featuring African art loans and gifts to the Orlando Museum of Art by Norma Canelas and William D. Roth. The goal of this exhibition is to show the diversity of personal adornment within Africa and to highlight strong works from the Roth collection. The small exhibition curated by Andrea Kalis, Curator of Ancient Americas and African Art, includes forty-seven works from the Yoruba, Baule, Dogon, and Akan in West Africa; the Zulu, Xhosa, Thembu, and Ndebele of southern Africa; and several works from Cameroon. Most of the works date to the twentieth century and demonstrate the range of materials, techniques, and styles found among African textile arts. (1)

Norma Canelas and William D. Roth have been credited as one of the top 100 art collectors in the country by Art & Antiques magazine. (2) Enthusiastic collectors, the Roths rely primarily on the knowledge and eye of Mrs. Roth. Much of their collection was purchased over the past thirty years in the United States from auctions, private dealers, galleries, and the Internet. They have also collected directly from contemporary artists. Their collection of material culture from all over the world includes more than 1,000 African arts of adornment such as headdresses, beadwork, textiles, and basketry. They started by collecting Ndebele headwork, and their collection today remains strongest in works from southern Africa.

The Roth collection has been highlighted in seven earlier exhibitions held at the Orlando Museum between 1998 and 2007) The current exhibition succeeds in displaying the quality and variety of personal adornments, such as belts, capes, collars, purses, hats, aprons, and textiles, as a means of conveying the artistic creativity and functions of adornment in Africa. They excite museum visitors. The exhibition is elegantly presented with its mix of different size and shape cases and professional mountings. These displays are sometimes interspersed with large color photographs mounted on the wall, usually corresponding to works in nearby cases. Little didactic information is available, but the text that is offered is presented in a digestible format. The labels may be divided into one, two, or three sections under the headings "Fast Fact," "How Did They Make This?" and/or "Comments From the Curator." Most of the labels, however, simply identify the works.

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Some of the more unusual or spectacular works include a variety of southern African beaded pieces, such as a customary white-beaded Zulu wedding cape, a Lesotho cape for "tribal" celebrations with plastic beads and tufts of metallic garland, and a Zulu headdress with finely beaded panels pieced together with words throughout. An exceptional Yei skirt and apron from Namibia was crafted from antelope hide, fiber, and long strands of ostrich-shell or glass beads. A case displays a Ntwana back wrap, or apron, from South Africa made with goatskin, glass beads, and metal beads, as well as several Himba works from Namibia. A fine Himba woman's leather skirt incorporates clay, ochre, fat, metal beads, and animal fur. Next to this case is a large color photo of three Himba women that illustrates well the wearing of garments like those in the case. A large color photo from the wedding of Nelson Mandela's grandson shows the groom in customary Xhosa wedding dress surrounded by friends and family in Western-style dress, a wonderful illustration of the coexistence of diverse styles of dress in South Africa.

A fine example of contemporary traditional Zulu basketry was crafted by Zenanile Liakliele in 1998. The label text notes that Zulu women's basketry and pottery have a worldwide appeal, commanding high prices, yet lacks any information on the specific artist. Situated on the back of the title wall is a case featuring works by San and Herrero groups of southern Africa. The San works include a pre-World War II antelope hide garment, a beaded leather bag, and a cosmetic case made of a small tortoise shell and beads, filled with fragrant herbs used for cosmetic or medicinal purposes. Among the few East African works is a leather Iraqw woman's initiation skirt from Tanzania.

Three beaded aprons from Cameroon are expertly displayed to show differences between conventional aprons and contemporary ones worn underneath Western-style clothing. Another case displays seven Cameroon fiber caps as examples of the Grasslands knotting and embroidery techniques. An appliqueed dance skirt made from raffia is the only Kuba work in the exhibit.

West Africa is represented by three Nigerian indigo-dyed male tunics and an Asante kente cloth from Ghana. A fiber Koro costume and crest, or nganidak, from Nigeria was once used for semi-annual agricultural celebrations. The label for the two Fante asafo flags hanging from the ceiling in the center of the gallery is located on the side of the title wall. The awkward placement of this label is made up for by the use of two thumbnail pictures, which assist the visitor with locating the art works. The text describes the nature of asafo companies and the applique technique of the cloth; however, it dismisses important contextual information on how the flags were used or an explanation of the flags' imagery. These flags, although they are textiles, seem out of place in an exhibit featuring personal adornment.

One of the most compelling works in the exhibition was a Mossi costume that would have been worn by a diviner, or baga. The leather tunic, covered in cowrie shells, included a leather, cowrie-covered hood with a large bird's beak that would have hung over the diviner's forehead. The label simply mentioned that this was a diviner's costume. Two pairs of leather cowrie bracelets were also included in the case, but not mentioned as part of the ensemble costume. Further information on the diviner's role and symbolism of the bird's beak were wanting.

Across from this case plays a video comprising clips donated by former curatorial assistant Kelly Govain. This was probably an inexpensive opportunity for Kalis to add a lively display of African adornment similar to works in the exhibition. However, without didactic text or narration, one must wonder what impression is left upon the viewer. All the participants are shown wearing traditional clothing and the ceremony takes place in a rural village setting. No evidence of the "modern" world is depicted. Perhaps a better option would have been to showcase the 2006 video Speaking with God: A Mossi Baga Diviner in Burkina Faso, produced, edited, and narrated by Christopher D. Roy. In this film, the baga diviner Sawadogo Tinguyamba is shown dressing for and participating in a special ceremony in front of a crowd that wears a mix of customary and contemporary clothing. The ritual performance, outfit and objects are all well explained by the narration. This video would have been a better choice for the exhibit in terms of showing the dressing and "performing" of a complete outfit across from the partial one on display, depicting a slightly different version of the costume type as an example of the variety discussed in the title wall introduction, and also in juxtaposition to the large wedding photo of Nelson Mandela's grandson.

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The main set of problems with this exhibition stem from the overall impression it creates, specifically in re-establishing stereotypes of "primitive" Africa. An effective comparison can be made with the exhibition "Where Symbols Meet: A Celebration of West African Achievement" at the Glenbow Museum in Calgary, Canada. This well-curated exhibition can serve to demonstrate how a museum with a small staff and no staff members specializing in African art can be successful. This permanent exhibition opened in April 1994, and continues to be the current display of their collection, developed in the 1950s and 1960s through the interests and efforts of the museum's founder, Eric Harvie. Since they had no in-house curatorial expert, they had initial discussions with a group of well-known Africanists, including Christaud Geary, Henry Drewal, Ray Silverman, and Kate Ezra. This group helped create the theme of the exhibit. The Glenbow also worked with community partners from the University of Calgary and the Calgary African communities.

The Glenbow is an art and ethnography museum. It currently has a collection of about 4,000 West African items, given by several different donors. The African exhibit was one of the museum's first multidisciplinary displays-combining art, historic, ethnographic, and contemporary culture items in one exhibit. Several contemporary African items were purchased or commissioned for the exhibit, most notably the sculpture Masquerader with Feather Headdress (1987) by Sokari Douglas Camp.

Along the back wall of "Where Symbols Meet" is a large screen playing a loop made up of selected footage from several sources: Kanaga masquerade dancing from Art of the Dogon (Metropolitan Museum of Art); Sande Society footage from Vai Tombo (University of California, Santa Barbara); Mossi and Bwa footage from Yaabe Soore, and geometric symbols from Dance of the Spirits (both University of Iowa). Text nearby identifies similar masks and discusses context.

In "Of Cloth and Culture," the effect of the entrance is problematic. The exhibit is located inside the Lockheed Martin Gallery directly accessed by way of the central atrium. The atrium, flooded with sunshine from its large skylight, contrasts with the darkly lit interior of the gallery. Near the entrance to the gallery, the visitor hears music from a video playing directly behind the title wall. Thus, the visitor is invited to leave a bright, open space to enter the "dark continent" of Africa with its low lighting, earthy colors, and percussion instrumentation coming from an unknown, mysterious source. The music adds a lively touch, but it is a type of percussion music unfamiliar to many museum goers. For these reasons, the entrance may reestablish stereotypes of "primitive" Africa.

The walls of the Orlando gallery are painted burgundy and the title wall is a deep indigo blue. Often ethnographic collections are presented in spaces with walls painted in earthy colors. So, although this is an art museum, the collection is presented as an ethnographic collection. Both museum exhibits situate the works in an environment with walls painted in earthy colors, yet only the Glenbow specifically states that it is both an art and ethnographic museum. This approach contrasts with other "art" displays within the Orlando Museum, including the Pre-Columbian gallery located next to this exhibition.

Though both museums have a streamlined number of staff members, the Orlando Museum consistently avoids more extended labeling of the African works. For example, each of the Cameroon hats had an identification label, yet only one text label was given for the group. The hats were discussed in terms of their similarities rather than illustrating differences between each region, technique, and design. This would have been a more desirable approach for demonstrating the diversity of African adornment.

Museum exhibitions not providing enough context is problematic. In the September 2, 2007, article posted on the Daytona News-Journal online website, the fine arts writer Laura Stewart states,

   One Zulu wedding cape, for example, combines the strong hues of its
   cotton fabric with beading so colorful and densely encrusted that
   it looks like a modern work of art ... While most of their context
   remains a mystery to Western eyes, the design elements that made
   African art so appealing to Picasso and other pioneering mod
   ernists is evident ... (4)

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The preoccupation with early twentieth century modernism is so ingrained in Western culture that, even in the twenty-first century, context is crucial. After having visited three of the exhibitions featuring the Roth collection, the lack of adequate context has been consistent.

Thus, in a comparison of the two exhibits, Glenbow took the time to consult both scholars in African art and their local African communities as a necessary strategy toward the development of their exhibition. Although the Orlando Museum frequently presents a fresh exhibition, didactic text and a scholarly viewpoint are sacrificed. However, both museums have developed educational programming around the exhibitions. The Glenbow also devoted an entire issue of their museum bulletin to their exhibition. (5) It is the overall presentation of context that is missing in the Orlando exhibits of the Roth Collection.

This issue of museums not consulting specialists in African art is reminiscent of a recent First Word by Lorenz Homberger and Christine Stelzig. (6) Although the focus was upon recognizing fakes, the authors raised the issue of museum curators and collectors who craft an exhibit when their knowledge of African art and culture is limited. I would concur with the authors that this is an ongoing problem, and I would like to add here an example of how a museum can approach the problem with positive results, i.e. the Glenbow's permanent exhibition.

The challenge for museums with African collections yet lacking staff members with this specialization is to create positive, educational exhibitions that also excite their audience. Although "Where Symbols Meet" took the time to consult many avenues of expertise, the exhibition has been on view now for more than thirteen years and none of the objects have been rotated. Regular museum goers pass by the exhibit, bored with the lack of changes. The Orlando Museum gives their audience something new by presenting different aspects of the Roth Collection over the course of nine years with rotating exhibitions, yet they have skimmed on context.

Notes

(1) The exhibition was reinstalled in July 2008; this review reflects its original installation.

(2) See Art & Antiques 18 (March 1995): 102; 19 (March 1996):95; and 24 (March 2001): 104.

(3) The exhibitions were "African Art of Power and Prestige: Selections from the Norma Canelas and William D. Roth Collection" (1998-1999); "In Kuba Style: Selections from the Norma Canelas and William D. Roth Collection" (1999-2000); "Splendors of East Africa: Selections from the Norma Canelas and William D. Roth CollectioN' (2000- 2001); "Of Power and Grace: The Art of Southern Africa" (2001-2002); "Of Power and Grace II: The Art of Southern Africa" (2002-2004); this exhibition was very popular so it was decided to revise it with a slightly different focus on the same region); "Patterns of Life: Bold and Powerful Ndebele Art of South Africa" (2004-2006); "The Art of the Congo: Selections and Gifts from the Norma Canelas and William D. Roth Collection" (2006-2007).

(4) http://www.news-journalonline.com/ NewsJournalOnline/Entertainment/Headlines/ entART01090207.htm.

(5) "Where Symbols Meet: A Celebration of West African Achievement," (1994), Glenbow Magazine 14 (1). Essays written by Dennis Slater, Nicholas David, Daniel Mato, Brian Hogarth, Melanie Kjorlien, Seema Bharadia, Heather Dumka, and Ama Shinnie are included. A short article on page 13 features Masquerader with Feather Headdress.

(6) Lorenz Homberger and Christine Stelzig (2006) "Contrary to the Temptation!: An Appeal for a New Dialogue Among Museums and Collectors, Scholars, and Dealers," African Arts 39 (2):1-6, 83.

COURTNAY MICOTS is a PhD student in African art history at the University of Florida. Her dissertation will concentrate on the Fante arts of Ghana. [e-mail]