Decolonizing African Art was the goal of the exhibit African Beauty Through African Eyes that closed out Black History Month at the Art Institute of Chicago. The exhibit included more than 250 sculptures from dozens of distinct cultures across the continent.
When Westerners began collecting and studying African art in the early 20th century their admiration of the work was often without context or attribution. Among those collectors were some of the standard bearers of the European art world at that time – Picasso, Gaugin and Matisse - who also incorporated their admiration of the art into their work.
Further, the exhibit explores concepts of beauty – often tied to goodness; and ugliness – tied to immorality. As such the exhibition included adornments – jewelry, headdresses, andSt hair embellishments - confirming the importance of grooming, hair and beauty to our ancestors.
The goal of the exhibition was to elevate the local indigenous perspectives of the works’ makers and communities.
