Look Deeper: Murry DePillars Exhibit at the Black History Museum

Double Vision is the BHM’s first original exhibit and the first exhibition its new building. 37 works are on show spanning DePillars’ entire career 1964-2007. He was the star of VCU Arts, the Professor who made VCU No.1 in the nations for Arts. The selected pieces show his unique use of meaningful images and symbols. I looked at a pettern of bright colors, and I saw Chiwara and Kanaga and many other Malian masks staring back at me: some obvious, some subtly hidden in the design. Brilliant! His multifaceted paintings and pen drawings, cover themes such as the period of American slavery and the civil rights movement, as well as the African and Malian roots of American Black Culture. I was so happy Ana told me to go see the exhibit!

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Bamana symbols on bogolan

Malian created an app for illiterate entrepreneurs

What a great idea! https://www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-mali-social-network-for-illiterates-20190617-story.html

Segou’s musical triumph in Richmond

Bassekou Kouyaté and Ami Sacko feted by Richmonders at the Richmond Folk Festival Mali’s famous orchestra NGONI BA was the Toast of the Town at the Richmond Folk Festival. Led by ngoni magician Bassekou Kouyaté and his vocalist wife Ami Sacko, the orchestra of seven Malian musicians wowed the crowd, and ended the Festival at fever pitch as three or four thousand fans danced the evening away at the Dominian Dance Pavilion on Brown’s Island Sunday night, October 16th. Kouyaté is an ancient musical name in Mali. At Sunday’s banjo workshop with four of Virginia’s banjo masters, Bassekou explained how he had learned to play the ngoni from his father and grandfather, and how his ancestors were playing music and sang the sovereign’s praises seven hundred years ago at the court of the original Lion King, Sunjata Keita. The Lion King founded the Malian Empire in the year 1235, and his legend became famous through the songs of his griot Balafasé Kouyaté, ancestor of Bassekou the le...

Virginia Friends of Mali

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