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National Museum of African Art - Smithsonian Institution

Museum News

Solstice Saturday

June 24, 2023
5:30 p.m.–midnight
National Museum of African Art
Solstice Saturday

Celebrate the first Saturday of summer!

Solstice Saturday kicks off African Art’s Sounds of Africa concert series celebrating 50 years of Hip-Hop! Come and enjoy an afternoon of music, tours, and traditional African games.

Beverages, food, and fun await. Museum store is open until 10 p.m., and all galleries are open until midnight!

Sounds of Africa is an ongoing concert series celebrating the music of the African diaspora.

Exhibition tours: 12 p.m., 2 p.m., 4 p.m., 6 p.m., 8 p.m.
Sounds of Africa + light show: 8 p.m.–midnight

To register, click here.

For the latest info about upcoming events, follow us on EventBrite.

#SolsticeSaturday

Open!
From the Deep: In the Wake of Drexciya with Ayana V. Jackson

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In the early 1990s, Drexciya, a Detroit-based techno duo made up of James Stinson and Gerald Donald, imagined an underwater kingdom populated by the children of pregnant women who had been thrown overboard or jumped voluntarily into the ocean during the transatlantic slave trade.

Drexciya’s founding myth has inspired numerous artists, among them Ayana V. Jackson who, in this exhibition, brings to life an immersive, feminist, and sacred aquatopia where African water spirits from Senegal to South Africa both midwife and protect the Drexciyans. Jackson asks that we reckon with the brutal history that cast these beings to the sea while simultaneously envisioning a world of powerful, resilient women. By using her own body to convey her message, Jackson actively engages in what it might have meant to be among the estimated two million captives who never made it to shore. What do you imagine the Drexciyans see looking back at us?

First Look!
From the Deep: In the Wake of Drexciya with Ayana V. Jackson

Cascading Celestial Giant III
Cascading Celestial Giant III
187.8 x 150.7 cm (73 15/16 x 59 5/16 in.)
April 29, 2023
4–5 p.m.
Mezzanine

Join artist Ayana V. Jackson and curator Karen E. Milbourne for a tour of Jackson’s aquatopia, a sacred underwater kingdom where African water spirits protect the descendants of pregnant African women who were thrown or jumped overboard into the Atlantic Ocean during the Middle Passage.

Register here

Ayana V. Jackson: From the Deep Origin Story.

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Click on the image to watch the video

Tune in as Ayana V. Jackson dives in to explore the history and inspiration behind the exhibition From the Deep: In the Wake of Drexciya. Here, her artworks bring to life an African, women-led aquatopia founded during the Middle Passage.

This video, originally presented at the Claiming Space Symposium (2022), is part of the Smithsonian Afrofuturism series, a collaboration of the National Museum of African Art, National Air and Space Museum, and National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Taste of Mimouna!

Taste of Mimouna! 2023

April 16, 2023
8–10 p.m.

To register, click here

Sample tantalizing dishes, enjoy traditional Andalusi-style songs, and take a special tour of artworks that express the interfaith themes inspired by Mimouna traditions—a special time when Moroccan Jews and Muslims break bread together!

Join liturgical artist Shir Ifrah as she performs the music and poetry of Mimouna. This festival, which marks the end of Passover and the advent of spring, is based on Moroccan narratives of unity, commemoration, goodwill, and friendship.

Presented in partnership with the Sephardic Heritage International DC (SHIN DC) and the DC Commission of the Arts and Humanities.

The Global Religions of Africa Initiative at the National Museum of African Art is generously supported by the Lilly Endowment Inc.

For the latest info about upcoming events, follow us on EventBrite

Africa Out Loud

Africa Out Loud

This Spoken Word and Open Mic celebrates the beauty and art of the African Diaspora with host 2Deep!

Date and time
Friday, March 31 · 6 – 8pm EDT
Location
Smithsonian National Museum of African Art 950 Independence Avenue Southwest Washington, DC 20560

Express yourself onsite! Come join our host poet 2Deep for an open mic event to celebrate the beauty and art of the African Diaspora.

2 DEEP THE POETESS, a spoken word artist of Nigerian descent will be our host for Africa Out Loud. With over a decade of snatching microphones and captivating audiences, 2Deep’s resume reads like Who’s Who travel guide. From Cornell University to Ottawa University, American University to Penn State, United States to Australia, this German born Alabama raised entertainer has spoken to crowds all over the globe. She’s opened for the late Gil Scott-Heron and performed for President Barack Obama’s first inaugural celebrations at the Washington National Cathedral. She was a four year undefeated slam champion, 2007 Talk To Me Eastern Slam Winner, member of Busboys and Poets’ 2009 Slam Team, Word War II Slam Champion, and prior Busboys and Poets’ Slam Master.

Register here

This event is free.