November 2019 - March 2020
HUNTING CULTURE – THE DONSO IN BAMANА TRADITION
From the Museum of African Art’s Collections
The exhibition HUNTING CULTURE – THE DONSO IN BAMANА TRADITION presents the ethics, beliefs and special status of the hunter in society based on the choice of objects collected by Dr. Zdravko Pečar and Veda Zagorac in Mali and other West African Countries in the 1960s and 1970s. Zdravko Pečar’s hunting collection is a separate unit within the collections of the Museum of African Art in Belgrade. It was exhibited from 1973 to 1983 at the Međimurje County Museum in Čakovec (Croatia), his hometown, and in 1983 it was showcased for the first time in the Museum of African Art in Belgrade.
Donso is a traditional term for hunter in Bamana culture, a concept implying a particular individual’s great knowledge of the natural habitat, its flora and fauna, as well as his exceptional endurance, courage and skill in hunting. Being a passionate hunter himself, Pečar was dedicated to proving his abilities, and on many occasions he went hunting with his friends and fellow-hunters from the Bamana communities in Mali. He learn from them about traditional hunting knowledge and Pečar was awarded the highest hunting title by the Bamana hunting society.
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17 October - 22 December 2019
UNPROTECTED WITNESS NO. 1: AFRODISIAC
An Intervention on the Permanent Display of the MAA
Unprotected Witness no. 1: Afrodisiac is the research project of three institutions – the Museum of African Art, Faculty of Fine Arts and Center for Museology and Heritology, two curatos – Jelena Spaić, Ana Knežević, one expert consultant – Milan Popadić and eight artists – Milica Rakić, Ana Adamović, Irena Kelečević, Ana Vujović, Ivana Ivković, Siniša Ilić, Milica Josimov & Saša Tkačenko.
The Unprotected Witness is a museum object, a well-kept memorable substance exposed to artistic interpretation and reinvention. The first Unprotected Witness is interpolated in the premises of the permanent exhibition of the Museum of African Art – the Veda and Dr. Zdravko Pečar Collection (MAA). As a subtitle, Afrodisiac refers to the eponymous groundbreaking 1973 album by Fela Kuti and the beginnings of Afrobeat. The whole concept of the setting can be interpreted from the musical backdrop (the aforementioned Kuti and the song, Public Witness Program by Fugazi from their 1993 album) of political-artistic visions of Kuti and Fugazi, but also within the phenomenon of institutional critique that morphs into institutional chic.
The exhibition will run at the MAA until 22 December 2019.
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The Cultural Heritage of Topčider
A tour organized by the Museum of African Art, memorial House of King Peter and Heritage House
Since the 19th century the urban planning of Topčider (one of Belgrade's many hills) was envisioned as a city oasis, with numerous parks, picnic spots, large areas of forest and greenery. Hidden within it are numerous villas, summer houses and art studios built at the beginning of the 20th century. Through the “Cultural Heritage of Topčider” tour we will reveal different cultural institutions. During this tour, you can visit Museum of African Art, the memorial House of King Peter, Archive of Yugoslavia, Heritage House – the Legacy of Petar Lubarda, Museum Vespa Serbia, House of Olga Jančić and Public Aquarium and Tropicarium Belgrade. To get an impression about the tour, visit this link.
Walking and talking with you, are art historians Ana Knežević, Museum of African Art curator & Ivana Zatežić, Heritage House associate.
Join our trek of discovery of the cultural Heritage of Topčider Hill!
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SWAHILI • autumn language workshops
On November and December, the Museum of African Art organizes the Swahili Autumn Language Workshops for adults (16+), guided by Marija Panić, PhD and Benjamin Towett Chemarum.
The Museum of African Art announced the enrollment in the autumn Swahili - language workshops on October.
Autumn workshops lasts from November 3rd to December 29th. The workshops are intended for beginners. Eventually, each student will be qualified for basic communication in Swahili.
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The exhibition HUNTING CULTURE – THE DONSO IN BAMANА TRADITION presents the ethics, beliefs and special status of the hunter in society based on the choice of objects collected by Dr. Zdravko Pečar and Veda Zagorac in Mali and other West African Countries in the 1960s and 1970s. Zdravko Pečar’s hunting collection is a separate unit within the collections of the Museum of African Art in Belgrade. It was exhibited from 1973 to 1983 at the Međimurje County Museum in Čakovec (Croatia), his hometown, and in 1983 it was showcased for the first time in the Museum of African Art in Belgrade.
