March 20
@ 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Participants under 16 must be accompanied by an adult
First come, first served

Create a unique, specially scented lotion or soap using pure African shea and cocoa butters along with other plants native to Africa as you learn about their beneficial nutrients.

This workshop is presented as part of the museum’s series of Workshop Wednesdays. Every first and third Wednesday of the month, stop by the museum for drop-in classes from trained teachers. Stay for as long as you like to complete your masterpiece. All skill levels and ages welcome; participants under age 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Workshops are on a first-come, first-served basis.

March 6
@ 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Participants under 16 must be accompanied by an adult
First come, first served

Throughout Africa, amulets, decorated pouches, and charms are worn to bring good fortune or protect their owners. Learn more about this ancient tradition and create your own to ensure well-being.

This workshop is presented as part of the museum’s series of Workshop Wednesdays. Every first and third Wednesday of the month, stop by the museum for drop-in classes from trained teachers. Stay for as long as you like to complete your masterpiece. All skill levels and ages welcome; participants under age 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Workshops are on a first-come, first-served basis.

February 27
@ 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Participants under 16 must be accompanied by an adult
First come, first served

Adinkra symbols, visual representations of concepts and proverbs developed by the Akan peoples of Ghana, were originally used on funerary cloths by royalty and wealthy individuals to pay tribute to the legacy of the deceased. Today, they are used extensively as decorative elements in textiles and design. Join graphic artist and designer Sharmila Karamchandani to learn about adinkra symbols before incorporating them into a one-of-a-kind card.

This workshop is presented as part of the museum’s series of Workshop Wednesdays. Every first and third Wednesday of the month, stop by the museum for drop-in classes from trained teachers. Stay for as long as you like to complete your masterpiece. All skill levels and ages welcome; participants under age 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Workshops are on a first-come, first-served basis.

We are excited to announce a major project the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art, is starting: In support of the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative, we will be digitizing and describing 14 collections created by women photographers in Africa! All of the women photographers were trailblazers in their respective fields and professions – art, anthropology, architecture, art history, geography, photojournalism, travel – and used photography as a tool for documentation, ethnographic field research, or ‘salvage photography’ to produce fleeting glimpses of what were perceived as rapidly ‘vanishing’ cultures and ways of life. These women exercised different cultural and social sensitivities when it came to photographing indigenous peoples in local and domestic settings.

Each month we will feature a different woman from the project.

1. Introduction

2. Constance Stuart Larrabee

3. Natalie Knight & Suzanne Priebatsch