Current Exhibition

Baskets and Masks – A Celebration of African Craft
October 6, 2008 - January 2, 2009

Visit the Mary C. Daly, RSM Art Gallery to view an extraordinary selection of museum quality, hand woven baskets from Botswana supplied by Originals from Africa and culturally profound African masks created by artist Johnny Mikiki Bombenza. 

Originals from Africa:  The most famous of all the craft products of Botswana, South Africa is the hand woven basket. As an integral part of the Botswana agricultural culture, baskets have been made and used for thousands of years. Today, the baskets of Botswana are equal to the world’s finest art forms and are considered to be collectors items.  The main producers of baskets are the women of the Bayei and Hambukushu tribes in northwestern Botswana. The baskets displayed here are created by the 24 women of Etsha Weavers Group and take
six weeks to complete. This complicated art form has been passed
down from generation to generation and pieces are truly one-of-a-kind.

Johnny Mikiki Bombenza is a gifted artist from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central Africa who has devoted his career to creating beautiful and culturally profound African masks.  Apparent in each mask is not only a ‘story’ but the significance of spiritual belief. Each mask has “a reality that is not tangible”or other worldly. His masks talk of war, marriage, death, hunting, baptism, widow’s grief, the sun’s blistering heat, and the lineage of the village chief. These masks are spoken to, celebrated and ceremonial.  They are not just works of art; they serve a very important role in the Congolese culture.  They embody the spirits of loved ones who have passed away, sages who warn of danger and of good hunting and fishing. They are meant to be spoken to and they speak back. They are the voices from within each of us.

This exhibition is in support of Mercy Center's Fair Earth Bazaar taking place in November 2008.

The Mary C Daly Art Gallery is open everyday from 9:00am - 4:00pm.