The Sankofa Society: Friends of African-American and African Art, founded in 2002, provides a forum for the study, support, and appreciation of arts from the people of Africa, and from people of African descent now living throughout the world. The term sankofa is associated with a West African proverb that advises people to look to the past in order to understand the present. Members enjoy a wide range of educational activities, including lectures, exhibition previews, workshops on collecting, and meetings with artists and other professionals in the arts. Opportunities are available for regional, national, and international travel.

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP:
$250 per member
$100 per junior member (under 40)

• Invitations to Sankofa Society receptions, educational events, exhibition previews, and the annual Sankofa Society Soiree
• Travel with Society members and Museum curators to auctions, art fairs, galleries, and museums
• Curatorial consultations for members who collect or want to begin collecting
• Subscription to Museum Members' Newsletter, and invitations to Museum events and exhibition
• 10% discount in the Museum Store and Terrace Café
• Reduced rates for Museum art classes
• Free passes to blockbuster exhibitions
• Dues 90% tax deductable
• Invitations to private events with curators, collectors, artists, and art dealers

April 13-15, 2012: Philadelphia, PA

Join us for a visit to view the exhibition Henry Ossawa Tanner: Modern Spirit and After Tanner: African American Artists Since 1940 both at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. We will visit the Brandywine Workshop where the founder Allan Edmunds will talk to us about the printmaking process, with a possible artist demonstration. A visit to the Philadelphia Museum of Art during their Art after 5 is on tap.

June 9, 2012: Montgomery, AL

On Saturday, June 9, we will travel to Montgomery, Alabama to see the exhibition Lois Mailou Jones: A Life in Vibrant Color at the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts. We also visit the Rosa Parks Museum.

July 26-29, 2012: Chicago, IL

The Sankofa Society will spend a long weekend in Chicago. The weekend will be filled with visits to museum and artist studios. We will view the Rashid Johnson: Message to Our Folks exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art and Dawoud Bey: Harlem USA at The Art Institute of Chicago. The artist studio visits are still in development but they will be wonderful opportunities to talk with an artist about their work and to see the process of creating art. More to come!

African American Art History Classes

Beginning in July, there will be African American art history classes offered by Andrew W. Mellon Curatorial Fellow Jeffreen Hayes. The classes will focus on the history, themes, and issues in African American art. This will be a great way to learn more about the art and the Birmingham Museum of Art’s African American art collection.

The classes are scheduled for Saturdays, July 7, 14, and 21 from 10 am to 12 pm. The pricing is as follows:

Sankofa Society Members -- Free
Museum Members -- $15 per class
Non-Members--$25 per class

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE!

The deadline for registration is June 15, 2012. For more information on all of the events, contact Jeffreen Hayes at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 205.254.2565 x4212

SAVE THE DATE
August 25, 2012: Sankofa Society Soirée

The Sankofa Society will host the 4th Annual Soirée on August 25, 2012. Please save the date and look for more information in the next newsletter.

Gallery Discussion with Dr. David C. Driskell
in conjunction with the exhibition Five Decades of Printmaking by David C. Driskell
November 12, 2011    

Art at Talladega College: David Driskell and Art Bacon in Conversation
November 13, 2011     

Third Annual Sankofa Soiree: The Soul of Rock & Roll
August 27, 2011

The Sankofa Society: Friends of African-American and African Art celebrated their 3^rd Annual Sankofa Soiree, The Soul of Rock & Roll, on Saturday, August 27^th. Legendary Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas headlined the event, which celebrated the contributions of African-American musicians to the rock-and-roll revolution in association with the Museum's exhibition Who Shot Rock & Roll.

The Honorable Judge Ralph Cook and his wife Charlsie were the honorary guests for the evening, a nod to Judge Cook's recent election as the rising chairman of the Museum Board of Trustees. Martha and the Vandellas performed several of their hit numbers including "Heat Wave" and "Dancing in the Streets" to a delighted audience of about 150 guests. Afterwards, the jazz group Just a Few Cats kept the party going with soulful tunes that had a crowd on the dancefloor until the end of the evening.

Sankofa Society travels to New York for Spiral opening, Gallery and Studio Visits
July 13-14, 2011

On July 13th, BMA Director Gail Andrews traveled to New York with Sankofa Society members to attend the opening of the BMA's exhibtion Spiral: Perspectives on an African-American Art Collective at the Studio Museum in Harlem.  BMA Curator Emily Hanna also traveled with the group, as well as Lauren Williams from the Museum's education department.  The Studio Museum opening was crowded and festive, with former Governer David Patterson in attendance, and Spiral artists Emma Amos, Richard Mayhew, and Merton Simpson holding court. The two-day trip included visits to ACA Galleries, Peg Alston Fine Arts, Kenkeleba Gallery, the Museo del Barrio, and the studios of Emma Amos and Joe Overstreet. 

Lecture by artist Emma Amos,
honored guest at the 2010 Soirée
September 12, 2010

2nd Annual Sankofa Society Soirée
September 11, 2010

This was an evening of live music, dancing, delicious food, and a celebration of African-American art and culture.  Sankofa members voted on an acquisition for the Birmingham Museum of Art's permanent collection.

Lecture by Dr. Johnetta B. Cole
August 19, 2010

Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole, Director, Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, and former President of Spelman College presented a lecture entitled “The Smithsonian National Museum of African Art Welcomes You Home!”
A private lunch with Sankofa Society members and Birmingham Museum of Art Director Gail Andrews followed the lecture.

Art at the Lake
June 19, 2010

At this family-friendly event, Sankofa members enjoyed an artist-led studio tour with Dr. Art Bacon in Talladega, AL, followed by a picnic on the lake (catered by Chef Michael Glenn).

Art and Jazz after Work
June 11, 2010
5:30 –7:00

Sankofa members enjoyed wine and music at the Museum, along with a curator-led tour by Ron Platt of the new exhibition Costume, Design, and Adornment in African-American Art.

Private Collection Tour
May 23, 2010

On Sunday, May 23rd, Sankofa Society members were invited to a coffee reception in the home of fellow Sankofa members Norm and Carnetta Davis.  Guests toured the Davis collection, which includes works by Romare Bearden, Charles White, Kevin Cole, Larry Walker, and many others.

Sankofa Society Spring Tour of Artists’ Studios
April 17, 2010

Sankofa Society members spent a Saturday visiting the studios of local African-American artists and touring the Birmingham Biennial and a special exhibition at ArtFolk Gallery featuring work of African-American artists. At mid-day the group took a break for lunch with Chef Michael Glenn at Ga’Briella’s Restaurant downtown. Curators Emily Hanna and Graham Boettcher traveled with Society members. Participants met and saw work by Debra Riffe, Darius Hill, Jim Burnett, Willow Scott, Tony Bingham, Amalia Amaki, Clifton Pearson, Art Bacon, Joe Minter, Moustafa, and Tia-Simone Gardner.

Sankofa Society Travel to Charlotte, North Carolina
February 20-21, 2010

Sankofa Society members traveled to Charlotte, North Carolina, on February 20th and 21st to see an extraordinary exhibition of art by Lois Mailou Jones at the Mint Museum, and the Hewitt Collection of African-American Art at the Harvey B. Gantt Center.

P.H. Polk Photographs: Pictures of Desire
February 18, 2010

Followed by a Public Lecture by Dr. Amalia K. Amaki 
Birmingham Museum of Art, Steiner Auditorium

Dr. Amalia Amaki, Professor of Art History at the University of Alabama and Curator of the Paul R. Jones Collection, provided insight into the fascinating life and work of Prentice H. Polk (1898- 1984), a Bessemer native who became one of the most significant photographers of the 20th century through his role as the official photographer of the Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University).

SPIRAL: My Recollections of an African-American Art Collective
January 23, 2010

Lecture by Sankofa Society member Dr. William Colvin
Birmingham Museum of Art Steiner Auditorium

Reception following, with sneak preview of P. H. Polk exhibition

In New York in 1963, a group of twelve African-American artists formed a collective called Spiral. The group included Romare Bearden, Hale Woodruff, Emma Amos, and Alvin Hollingsworth, among others.  The group’s concerns included the urgent societal issues of the Civil Rights movement coupled with explorations of abstraction and a search for Black aesthetics. Dr. Colvin discussed his interactions with these artists, and showed excerpts of his own video-recorded interviews. 

Lecture by artist Emma Amos,
honored guest at the 2010 Soirée
Sunday, September 12, 2010