African Movies & Art
The early bird gets the worm. We began celebrating African culture in December and took the opportunity to visit the National Museum of African Art in Washington DC.*
I was able to view the Nollywood Exhibit and gain first hand knowledge of the incredible contributions of Nigerian filmmakers. Nollywood is the second largest movie industry in the world after Bollywood and produces more movies than Hollywood annually. This nuggest of information was a pleasant surprised as my family and I toured the exhibit. I was impressed with the grandeur of it all on our self guided tour. We enjoyed the black and white photographs, artwork, furniture, and incredible and intricate gown costumes and jewelry from various Nollywood movie sets that were on display.
Check out this amazing furniture piece. It was both stylish and comfortable.
This art piece was hanging in the exhibit. Sorry I don't remember the artist. The colors were vibrant and my girls and I loved viewing it. We kept returning to it during our visit.
African American Music
My family and I were also able to participate in some additional African American activities during African American History Month. Our local library held a dance class featuring African American dancing through the years beginning with the 1920's. We had a blast dancing and learning a plethora of interesting facts about African American musicians, music, and dances.
A week later, I was able to attend a concert featuring African American orchestra jazz music at another library and was dumbfounded by how amazing the young middle school and high school bands were during the performance. They performed pieces by Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Frank Foster, and others. It gave me a newfound appreciation for Music and the Arts in public and private education and how important it is for all children to experience it first hand as they learn about our incredible American history.
These experiences gave me a renewed appreciation for my rich heritage and I look forward to continuing to sharing my love of history and culture with my children and with others.
From the desk of Esther Kamoche Robinson
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Notes
The National Museum of African Art is different from the National Museum of African American History and Culture. They are within walking distance from each other and have a wealth of artifacts and resources available.
Informative Links & Sources
Nollywood Info: https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-nollywood/
Museum of African American History and Culture: https://nmaahc.si.edu
Museum of African Art: https://africa.si.edu
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