“Divination Instrument (Galukoji)” (detail)
Visions from the Congo: Ancestral Contact
Ongoing Evans Court
Free admission
This special two-part installation of sculpture bears witness to the vitality of Congolese art from the past and the inspiration it provides to artists in the present. The first section features four sculptures by artists from the Pende culture, of the Congo’s Kwilu and Kasai regions that relate to the wrenching disruptions experienced by the Pende in the early 20th century during the Belgian colonial period. The second part of Visions from the Congo features life-size sculptures by contemporary African American artists Renée Stout and Alison Saar, both of whom draw from African art and culture in creating their works. This installation is curated by Richard Woodward, VMFA curator of African art and complements the exhibition Environment and Object – Contemporary African Art at VCU’s Anderson Gallery.
“Divination Instrument (Galukoji),” 19th–20th century, Pende culture (Democratic Republic of Congo), wood, fiber, feathers
Lent by Allen C. Davis, L.59.2011.1
“Chief’s or Diviner’s Figure representing the Belgian Colonial Officer, Maximilien Balot,” 19th–20th century, Pende culture (Democratic Republic of Congo), wood
Lent by Herbert Weiss, L.58.2011.2
"Untitled" (from the Crossroads installation), 1989, Alison Saar (American, born 1956), wood, iron, tin
Sydney and Frances Lewis Endowment Fund, 92.233