‘WHEN GOOD OBJECTS GO BAD’ TALK AT WILLIAMS COLLEGE MUSEUM APRIL 12

AVV 12-21 #681954

WILLIAMSTOWN, MASS. — The Williams College Museum of Art will present a program, “When Good Objects Go Bad: A Look at Recent Events in the Lives of Malian Antiquities,” given by Kristina VanDyke, associate curator for collections, The Menil Collection, on Thursday, April 12, at 7 pm.

Thousands of terracotta sculptures from the Twelfth to Fifteenth Centuries offer insight into the lives of people who participated in the trans-Saharan trading empires of West Africa. Given the fact that these works potentially push back the understanding of art history in the region by centuries, surprisingly few art historians have taken up the challenge of this corpus.

Because the majority of these sculptures were obtained through the art market as opposed to archaeological excavation, the perception of the terracottas as tainted goods has effectively diminished their art historical potential. This talk challenges attendees to examine their assumptions about these objects and the political and ethical issues that come into play when collecting and studying African art.

 The Williams College Museum of Art is on Main Street. For more information, 413-597-2429.