Artists and Patrons in Traditional African Cultures
African Sculpture from the Gary Schulze Collection

The following is an exhibition of African art from the collection of Mr. Gary Schulze. The exhibition would be accompanied by a catalogue containing reproductions of a substantial number of the objects on display, along with an essay by the African historian Donna Page. This proposal presents information about the collection, the collector, the writer, and the display needs for such an exhibition.

The Collection
This collection contains objects representing more than 30 different cultures spanning 15 countries, and some 2000 years of history. The oldest artifacts, terracottas from the Nok area of Nigeria, date from 500 B.C. to c. 200 A.D.

Many pieces in this collection are extremely rare. The miniature Benin ivory leopard is one of only two in existence, the other of which is in the collection of the New Orleans Museum of Art. The Dogon and Ndengese figures are equally rare. Examples of Royal Benin brass-casting are also represented here, along with wood and ivory carvings from a number of African cultures.

Some works from this collection have appeared in the literature on African art. Two Sande masks and the Mahongwe mask were illustrated in African Art in American Collections (Robbins & Nooter: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1989). Others have appeared in exhibitions of African art, notably at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C. and at the Studio Museum of Harlem.

In addition to the rarity of many pieces in this collection, it is distinguished by its aesthetic value. The collection has been assembled with a fine appreciation of the formal qualities of African art within the idioms dictated by regional styles. Since this would represent the first African Art exhibition in the Queensborough gallery, it has the potential to attract a new audience both for the college and for the gallery.

The Collector
Gary Schulze began to collect African art in 1962, as a member of the Peace Corps in Sierra Leone. During his time there, in addition to teaching history in secondary school, he was assigned as Acting Curator of the Sierra Leone National Museum. He also traveled in Nigeria and Ghana, exploring the art production of those countries as well. He is now based in New York, and has continued to collect over the course of more than thirty years. He brings both an informed eye and an appreciation of local cultures to his collection.

The Catalogue
To consist of approximately 84 pages with 1 color and black and white photos with captions and 40 pages essay.

The Essay
“Carvers and Patrons: Patterns of Ownership in Traditional African Societies” will explore the manner in which art was created and possessed in local cultures. The essay will use examples from the collection to illuminate the nature of the artist/patron relationship. In contract to Western societies where art is most often owned by individuals, much African art is communally owned, by groups, or by members of age, grade and other societies. Objects owned in this way, hidden rather than displayed to be “brought out” only on special occasions, like initiations or other rites of passage. In addition to group ownership, patronage by royalty resulted in the creation of many objects, some of which are seen in this collection. Diviners also sometimes played a part in the commissioning of sculpture. This essay will explore the training of carvers in different localities, and the different patronage systems under which they worked.

The Author
Donna Page has written several essays on the art of Africa, including “Two, Three, Four: Multiples in African Art” for Muhlenberg College (1987), and most recently “Keepers of the History” in African Art from the Collection of Dr. Michael Berger for the SMA Museum in Tenafly, N.J. (1997). She has been an adjunct in the Department of Art & Photography at Queensborough Community College since 1987. She is currently working on other catalogue essays including “Liberian Images” for the SMA Museum.