Newark Museum hosts “Glass Beads of Ghana” thru June 15, 2009
The making and the use of decorative beads has been a tradition in Africa for over 400 years. The same styles have been maintained and updated in the west African country of Ghana.
To explore this art form, the exhibit uses video and photographs to show how the Krobo people of Ghana melt powdered glass into bead molds. And, there are also tons of examples of the beautiful beads themselves. Pretty and colorful!
The Newark Museum
49 Washington Street, Newark, NJ, 973-596-6550
(Woman dressed for dipo, a ceremony celebrating coming of age, January 2005, Akosambo Ghana, photo by Christa Clarke, Collection of The Newark Museum)
For anyone in the Detroit, MI area who is interested in African beadwork, I highly recommend a visit to the MBAD African Bead Museum. Not only is there an extensive collection of beads and beaded sculpture, the entire exterior of the building is beaded (a mural like no other). Absolutely incredible.
Site: http://www.mbad.org/aboutus.html