-
ByAW 0 JO E
CBICAGO-It' Black His­
tory Month. The special
hows, announcements, arti­
cl and events are quickly
filling up your calendar. But,
wait. This is the year to expe­
rience up close the source of
this great history, a trip to
Africa. Now, since actually
traveling bac across the At­
I,antic is beyond the reach of
moat, there is a worthwhile
substitute that is doable: a
trip to Chicago to take in the
new Africa Exhibi t at the
Field Museum. '
Although no exhibit could
begin to cover all of Africa in
depth, the Field Museum's
illit Jl t,
Central, East and North M­
rica and the Atrican Diu­
por during various periods.
Africa provides you with
a broad introduction to the
African continent and pe0-
ple of African descent.
More than 340 ethnologi-
ROYAL BE�I ART - A plaque frOID Benin Kingdom; Edo peoples
Nigeria, 17th century. A cast copper alloy. (photo by Jeffrey Ploskonka)
, Then discover the signifi­
cance of mining and metal
working and the social con­
text of Benin bronz and
ivory.
You may go on to explore
the savanna environment
and investigate Africa's
Great Rift.
And eventually you will
find the complexity of the de­
sert ecosystem on a caravan
d endan . Learn th vari­
ous way in which they m in­
tained their ethnic culture
and pride within the mul­
ticultural Americas.
The $4 million Africa ex-
hibit r pr n coll ra-
ive ef or by Afric n an
African American scholars
the narr tors and d igner
of their ,own people' stori .
.Interactive and hands-on
h i exhibit is a
.long rm commitment. So, if
lack i tory month is too
hart to allow h tri p, then
ther will be time this spring
or summ r.
cal objects appear in the con­
text of their . In 15,000
square feet of space, a ri
of ven true-to-life settings
makes you feel as if "you are
there"-African cities: Com­
munity and Family Life; bus
and Audio-visual Presenta­
tions; Introduction-Orienta­
tion Gallery; Art and
Society; Adaptation and En­
vironments; Commerce
Caravans Across the Sa­
hara; and Africans in the
World-Transforming the
Americas. '
You will be drawn into the
Africa exhibits by a lively
and festive marketplace
that is a recreation of a bus­
tling street in Dakar,
Sen ale
M a �tletl�l4!!J8e
.. i r ftAlah� ..... +1inft
of Tabaaki, a Muslim holy
day.
Continuing on the jour­
ney, you will survey the ma­
jor art-producing regions of
the Cameroon grass fields
and Zaire.
ctiviti , multimedia pres­
ntations and one of the fin­
t collections of African
rtifacts help visitors come to
d r under tandingofAf­
riC :.
tri p across the Sahara to the
Kano marketplace,
Finally, the African Dias­
pora s tion provides exp ri­
ence that help visitor
examine a number of qu -
tiona, including how and why
lavery happen .
In th m ricas, you w.ill
find the d p ations and in­
novation brou ht to our con­
temporary world by African