SAVANNAH, GA – September 5, 2023 – The Savannah African Art Museum has announced the fall lineup of workshops continuing this year’s theme of “Honoring and Celebrating”, the three-part series that centers around honoring & celebrating ancestors, family traditions, trailblazers, earth, and harvest time. Each workshop will be interactive with hands on activities for all participants. The third installment will focus on “Celebrating the Fall Harvest” with the first event scheduled for September 9 at their Upbeat Village Terracotta Gallery, 201 East 37th Street, Savannah.
- September 9th – Terracotta Gallery Tour and Pinch Pot Workshop: To kick off the new series of workshops, The Savannah African Art Museum will hold a special tour of the Terracotta gallery to inspire participants before the opportunity to create a small clay pinch pot to store seeds or affirmations for the new year.
- October 14th – Creating & Decorating with Corn Husk: Continuing the theme of harvest, The Savannah African Art Museum will hold a workshop revolving around corn, a common symbol for the Fall Harvest and one of Africa’s main crops. Corn is often used in rituals and ceremonies, marking important milestones in the agricultural cycle and often celebrated to ensure a successful crop and express gratitude for the abundance received. Corn is also used in Kwanzaa celebrations, displayed on the family Kwanzaa table as a symbol of the children and the future, which they embody. Participants will create a corn husk wreath for a symbol of the Fall Harvest or for a Kwanzaa decoration or gift.
- November 11th – Mask Making: The Museum will explore the importance of masks within African culture, which are worn during rituals, initiations, veneration, and celebrations by many different ethnic groups. Harvest Festivals are just one of many celebrations where masks may be worn. Participants will look at a few Harvest masks, learn a few mask-making & wearing basics and create their own masks using paper plates, fabric, paint, coloring pencils and other adornments.
- December 9th – Creating a Kinara for Your Kwanzaa Celebration: This workshop will honor a common African Harvest celebration also called “First Fruits.” It involves several days of planning to bless the newly harvested crop and purify the people prior to eating the food from the harvest. First Fruits is the basis of the African American celebration, Kwanzaa, celebrated December 26th – January 1st, conceived by Dr. Maulana Karenga in 1966. It is an ingathering of African Americans for celebration of their heritage and their achievements, reverence for the Creator, creation, commemoration of the past, recommitment to cultural ideals and celebration of the good. Participants will learn more about the celebration, the African symbols & their origin, create and decorate their own Kinara – the candle holder for the 7 candles symbolizing a Kwanzaa principle, to be lit each day of the celebration.
“We have enjoyed engaging the community throughout this year with our workshop series honoring and celebrating the ancestors, family, traditions, trailblazers, the earth and now our final series installment, Fall harvest time!” Education and Community Outreach Liaison, Lisa Jackson said. “There are many new collaborations and events upcoming including our Kwanzaa workshop and Kwanzaa marketplace. We look forward to hosting our community here at the museum and sharing these experiences with them!”
All workshops are free and will be held from 11:00 to 1:00 pm on the second floor of the museum’s Upbeat Village Terracotta Gallery unless otherwise stated. Please note that it is stair access only, with no elevator or wheelchair access available for the 2nd floor. However, the Terracotta Gallery located on the first floor has full access as does the main museum which has an outdoor lift and indoor elevator. Registration is required via the museum’s website, www.savannahafricanartmuseum.org. To learn more about the museum, upcoming workshops, and the museum’s newest collections, please visit www.savannahafricanartmuseum.org and follow them on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at @SavannahAfricanArtMuseum.
Savannah African Art Museum is a nonprofit institution that introduces all audiences to African art and culture. Its mission is to provide engaging experiences that educate and start conversations about the power, diversity, and spirituality of African art.
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