Photo courtesy of University Relations

In celebration of Black History Month, the Hofstra Museum of Art opened the Art of the Dogon exhibition on Tuesday, Feb. 8, showcasing African art in the David Filderman Gallery, located on the ninth floor of the Axinn Library.

“The Dogon are people that are primarily based in the African country of Mali,” said Karen T. Albert, the museum director and curator of the exhibit. “One of the things, particularly with African art, is that most people in the West see it as one thing, and it’s quite diverse. Our collection has more than 70 different ethnic cultures and they could look very different, even though they’re all African art.”

The exhibition showcases 30 out of the 66 pieces of Dogon art that the collection holds, some of which includes jewelry, masks and figurines.

“The Dogon works of art on view, dating from the 19th and 20th centuries, illustrate the tremendous richness and depth of traditional cultural practices and art forms,” Albert wrote in a statement. “The Dogon is a living culture whose material objects continue to be used in rituals and masquerades supporting spiritual traditions.”

The objects were gifted to the museum by Roda Graham, Sol and Josephine Levitt and Dr. and Mrs. Pascal James Imperato, but the exhibition goes beyond just having these works on view.

“We have a kiosk where you can watch a video of the objects and masks that you see on display with documentation of what they would look like in real life, used by the people that made them,” said Kristen Dorata, the collection manager for the museum.

An objective of the exhibit is to make students think more carefully about African and Dogon art and how they look at other cultures from their own perspective, according to Albert. Philip Arnow, a junior linguistics major, enjoyed viewing the exhibit. The wooden sculptures even reminded him of ones at his grandparents’ house.

“African culture, what this represents and where this comes from is not something that I am particularly too acquainted with, so it’s fun seeing it exhibited here,” Arnow said. “The story that all of these [objects] have and the text that goes with it is really interesting to see.”

Angelina Olivo, a freshman mechanical engineering major, gets an inside perspective on the exhibit, as she works at the museum.

“[The exhibition] is important because it shows how people are getting the history behind [these objects] and it gives a certain light to the art,” Olivo said.

Black History Month is a celebration that honors the triumphs and struggles of Black people throughout American history.

“The Black Student Union (BSU), along with other multicultural organizations on campus, have been having fun and educational programs throughout the month of February that have been Black focused,” said Kayla Stadeker, a junior global studies major and the secretary of BSU. The Art of the Dogon exhibit was not coordinated by BSU, but they have many events centered around celebrating Black History Month.

Stadeker believes that it’s great that there is a month dedicated to Black history, but also maintains that celebrating and learning about Black history should go beyond that time frame.

The Art of the Dogon exhibition will be on display throughout the spring semester and will run through Friday, July 22.