Exhibitions to open at Smithsonian's Anacostia Community Museum featuring South African and U.S. Women Artists

Media Advisory

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Media preview for the exhibitions "Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence" and "Home Sewn: Quilts from the Lower Mississippi Valley"

WHEN: Wednesday, Dec. 4
10:30 a.m. – noon                                                                         

WHERE: Smithsonian's Anacostia Community Museum
1901 Fort Pl. S.E.

WHO: Beverly Gibson and James Green, co-curators, "Ubuhle Women"  
Jasmine A. Utsey, curator, "Home Sewn"

The Anacostia Community Museum's focus on the industry and ingenuity of women is highlighted in the exhibitions "Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence" (main gallery) and "Home Sewn: Quilts from the Lower Mississippi Valley" (community gallery). Both will be on view from Dec. 9 through Sept. 21, 2014.

The preview will feature a brief presentation by the curators, a Q&A session and a gallery tour.

A visually spectacular exhibition, "Ubuhle" (Oo-buk-lay) features the intricately beaded tapestries created by several women comprising an artists' collective in a small town in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. Through the power of their work incorporating traditional techniques transformed into the high art they call "ndwango" ("In-dwang-go" in the Xhosa "Ho-sa" language), these women demonstrate how they rise above the impacts of poverty to create stunning works of arts and support themselves and their families.

"Home Sewn: Quilts from the Lower Mississippi Valley" features pieces from the museum's permanent collection. The quilts on display are those created by two sisters and a friend who were trained in quilt making at the turn of the last century in an African American rural Mississippi community where this skill was passed down through generations.

These exhibitions were developed in concurrence with the museum's expanded mission to focus on issues affecting communities.

SOURCE Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum