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Description: The Power of Gold: Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana
The Power of Gold: Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana and its accompanying catalogue constitute the Dallas Museum of Art’s first exhibition devoted to Asante art and culture. The exhibition unites key objects of Asante art from the DMA’s rich and diverse collection of the arts of Africa with masterpieces from private collections and institutions around the globe to illustrate the...
PublisherDallas Museum of Art
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Director’s Foreword
Agustín Arteaga
The Eugene McDermott Director
The Power of Gold: Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana and its accompanying catalogue constitute the Dallas Museum of Art’s first exhibition devoted to Asante art and culture. The exhibition unites key objects of Asante art from the DMA’s rich and diverse collection of the arts of Africa with masterpieces from private collections and institutions around the globe to illustrate the stunning array of adornments worn and carried by Asante royalty from the eighteenth to mid-twentieth century.
Upon the debut of the exhibition and catalogue, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to Margaret McDermott, whose vision and generosity inaugurated the Dallas Museum of Art’s small but important collection of Asante regalia.
I am also deeply grateful to all of the generous lenders to this exhibition (here is the complete list). Their willingness to share their treasures with the DMA’s audience has been the crucial factor in transforming The Power of Gold into a landmark exhibition. I would like to mention particularly The British Museum, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and Dr. Martha Ehrlich for the range and diversity of their numerous loans.
I would like to recognize Dr. Roslyn Adele Walker, Senior Curator of the Arts of Africa, the Americas, and the Pacific and The Margaret McDermott Curator of African Art, for her leadership role as curator of the exhibition and scholarly editor of this publication. Roz selected the objects featured, conducted extensive research, envisioned the contents of the catalogue, and invited the other authors to participate in the project. For her dedication, expertise, and unrelenting quest for perfection, I offer my most sincere appreciation. From start to finish, she has been the driving force behind The Power of Gold.
I gratefully acknowledge the connoisseurship and specialized knowledge of our contributing authors: Malcolm D. McLeod, formerly Keeper of Ethnography, British Museum, and Vice-Principal, Glasgow University; Martha J. Ehrlich, Emerita Associate Professor, Art History, at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville; Doran H. Ross, Director Emeritus of the Fowler Museum at UCLA and, in his own words, “apprentice to Ananse from 1972 to the present”; Christraud M. Geary, Teel Senior Curator Emerita of African and Oceanic Art of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and Roslyn A. Walker. Their thorough and enlightening texts form the core of this publication and have been invaluable to the success of the project. Roz and I extend our thanks to the African art curators, academicians, and other specialists who provided advice and assistance throughout the research process: Billy Allen, Gilbert Amegatcher, Ian Beckett, Nana Kojo Boakye, Dulcie Brandon-Kirby, John Buxton, William Churchill, Carolyn Cree & Family, Chelsea Dacus, Gail Davitt, Peter Fitzwilliams, Gordon Frimpong, Mitch Garrard, Helen Giddings, Sally Goodsir, Suzanne Gott, Cheri Hadley, James Hamill, Julie Hudson, Stephanie Killingbeck-Turner, David Killingray, Alisa LaGamma, Imogen Laing, Kwame Lartey, Jeremy Lawrence, Henrietta Lidchi, Lucy McCann, Steve Meeks, Stephen Mellor, Olivier Meslay, Joseph Nash, Nana Nyarkua Ocran, Angus Patterson, Sharon Patton, Okyeame Jeffrey Prempeh, Nii Quarcoopome, John Ross, Raymond Silverman, Carol Thompson, Edleeca Payne Thompson, Akwete Tyehimba, Hermione Waterfield, and Megan Zaremba.
A project of this scope would not have been possible without the collective efforts of numerous individuals. The following DMA staff members were crucial to the success of the exhibition: Jacqueline Allen, Fran Baas, Jill Bernstein, Kim Bryan, Cynthia Calabrese, Jessie Carrillo, Gregory Castillo, Alicia Chavez, Kimberly Daniell, Aubrey DeZego, Tamara Wootton Forsyth, Jessica Harden, Ama Iromuanya, Lance Lander, John Lendvay, Stacey Lizotte, Skye Malish-Olson, Claire Moore, Mary Nicolett, Melissa Hartley Omholt, Emily Schiller, Rachel Spradley, Isabel Stauffer, Jenny Stone, Joni Wilson-Bigornia, and Megan Zembower.
For their contributions to the publication, I would like to recognize Eric Zeidler for expertly overseeing and coordinating all aspects of production; Queta Moore Watson for her perceptive editing of the catalogue; Ebony McFarland for her invaluable assistance in compiling the checklist and coordinating numerous other details; Martha MacLeod for organizing the complicated logistics of sourcing catalogue photography; and Tayana Fincher for assisting with photography and research along with innumerable other offerings. Brad Flowers and Chad Redmon worked meticulously to create many of the stunning group and individual shots of the objects reproduced in these pages. Giselle Castro-Brightenburg oversaw the sourcing and transmission of all photography. It is with deep gratitude that Roz and I acknowledge Gonzalo Saavedra, Carmen Robles, and María José Subiela of Ediciones El Viso for producing the catalogue and providing its appealing design. Finally, we would like to acknowledge Patricia Fidler and Nicholas Geller at our distributor, Yale University Press.
The DMA acknowledges the generosity of numerous contributors who have made this presentation possible. I express special gratitude to our co-presenting sponsors, Texas Instruments and PNC Bank.
We are humbled by our longstanding partnership with Texas Instruments, whose unparalleled benevolence—along with TI co-founder Eugene McDermott and his wife, Margaret—have shaped the DMA and Dallas’s cultural legacy.
We welcome PNC to our growing network of corporate supporters, and are thankful for their steadfast approach to providing rich artistic experiences in Dallas and communities across the country.
I am very grateful to Kosmos Energy for underwriting the exhibition’s multitude of educational programs. We share in your commitment to promoting cross-cultural understanding and fostering appreciation of Ghanaian cultural heritage.
I must also thank Visit Dallas and the Dallas Tourism and Public Improvement District for bringing national attention to our efforts to create a robust cultural community.
Most significantly, we would like to thank His Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the Asantehene, for his gracious support and encouragement. His Majesty contributed his own foreword to the catalogue, an honor for which we are extremely appreciative.
For many years the Dallas Museum of Art has collected, exhibited, and championed the arts of Africa. This exhibition follows in the footsteps of African Masks: The Art of Disguise, African Headwear: Beyond Fashion, and Saturated: Dye-Decorated Cloths from North and West Africa in celebrating African art at the DMA. The Power of Gold: Asante Royal Regalia from Ghana is the DMA’s first foray into the field of Ghanaian arts and regalia. On behalf of the Museum’s trustees, scholars, and staff, I am delighted to share these treasures with you on this most auspicious occasion.
Director’s Foreword
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