This summer teenagers explored ways to put their thoughts into words and discover their unique voices. As participants in the Teen Writing Workshops, they had the opportunity to discuss social justice, identity, race, politics, and pop culture as they examined art, engaged in art analysis, and practiced their writing skills through monologue and descriptive writing, haiku, and dream journaling. Herewith, selected writings from the summer 2021 teen writing workshop.
Vital Contributions I Am . . . Contemporary Women Artists of Africa
Monologue
As I look back
by Rielle Bernard
as I look back at the art
the colors I see
start to pop back out at me
the blues
the yellows
the browns
the pinks
the whites
the colors that take flight
mean so much to me.
the remembrance of how hard we worked
to obtain freedom
in our little kingdom.
as we remember our queens and kings that helped free us.
from working hard in the fields to making deals
we did it
we pushed through.
so the end of the story
but not yet glory
Whispers of the Past Caravans of Gold Fragments in Time-Art, Culture, and Exchange Across Medieval Saharan Africa
A to Z Poetry
by Malachi Sweet
African beauty contains different elements.
featuring great heritage, independence jewels.
Kings, leaders, men.
Native oppressed Professors.
Queens, royalty, Senators.
Talent unmatched.
Vibrant warriors, xeroxed, young zestful.
by Hannah A Dorval
Abandoned beauty curates destiny
Emerging from gold hides immense joy
Kindle lost meanings
Narrate opalescent paragraphs
Quietly reflects solemn thoughts
Under violent war
Xenia yields zealousness
Ebb and Flow Currents: Water in African Art
Haiku
by Hannah A Dorval
1.
Vivid and vibrant
Show great sacrifice and strength
Victory is won
2.
Symbolically
Brown Ripples depict vast strength
Fish and snake touch hearts
3.
Purpose stays Unknown
Boats show trade and travel too
A new life begins
4. Freedom rings through sea
boats tour in purposeful search
of innovation
5.
Art tells narrative
Threads commend liberation
Flatter sandy grains
The Hero Within Heroes: Principles of African Greatness
Dream Journaling
My Mother’s Voice
by Anonymous
I hear my mother’s voice,
Calling, yelling, screaming to me
But outside is where my joy resides
And being free lies within me.
Home is where I lay my head, to keep me safe warm and fed.
My mother’s tone is unique,
Very stern but also serene.
As nighttime approaches and the streets are scarce
When I run back to my safe space, my mother’s voice will be right there.
Msanii Kijana (“young artist”) is an independent study project for high school students who are interested in art history and the visual arts. Each participant tours the National Museum of African Art’s collection, selects three works of art to research, creates three original artworks inspired by the pieces selected from the museum’s collection, and writes brief narratives about his or her artworks.
Msanii Kijana offers students an opportunity to investigate works of art through specific questions or themes of their choosing, build their portfolios, and gain experience to highlight on college applications and scholarships. The young artists’ original artworks will also be featured on the National Museum of African Art’s website.
2021 Msanii Kijana Project
Now accepting applications for the 2021 Msanii Kijana Project.
Nearly fifty years after the release of the feminist anthem “I Am Woman,” women still find their numbers underrepresented in politics, business, and museum collections. While this exhibition draws its name from the 1970s song, it highlights a more contemporary feminism that is not based on any single narrative of womanhood, but explores the vital contributions of women to numerous issues including the environment, identity, politics, race, sexuality, social activism, faith, and more. Crossing both generational and media divides, I Am . . . features the best of modern and contemporary artistic practice and offers an inclusive vision of women making art, in relation to the compelling issues that defined these artists’ times.
Each diverse work of art comes from the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art. Beginning in 2012, the museum launched the Women’s Initiative Fund to increase the profile of Africa’s women in the arts through exhibitions, publications, acquisitions, and strategic partnerships globally. This exhibition is one result, as is the overall increase from 11 to 22 percent of the number of women artists in the museum’s permanent collection.
To recommend other valuable resources advocating for Africa’s women in the arts, to make a contribution to this initiative, or to share your own story using the social media hashtags @IAMnmafa and #IAMnmafa.
Other initiatives
Pioneering Women Photographers in Africa, 1930s-1970s
The Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives (EEPA), National Museum of African Art, is working on Pioneering Women Photographers in Africa, 1930s—1970s. In support of the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative, the project will digitize and describe 14 collections created by women photographers in Africa! To learn more, click here
In 2018, the Smithsonian Institution launched American Women’s History Initiative. To learn more about other exhibitions, programs, and activities about women around the Smithsonian, visit: https://womenshistory.si.edu/about
I Am . . . Contemporary Women Artists of Africa is made possible by the Women’s Initiative, which is generously supported by Edward P. Bass and Sasha Camacho, Nancy McElroy Folger, Miyoung Lee, Paul Neely, the Sakana Foundation, Patty Stonesifer and Michael Kinsley, and Ronda Stryker and William D. Johnston. Additional support for textile conservation provided by the Coby Foundation.
I want to continue using my work to empower
thanks a lot
You are now a Member of the National Museum of African Art. Thank you for supporting what we do! You can increase your giving at any point to gain increased access to the museum. Email NMAfAMembership@si.edu with any questions. Thank you!