The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) has received a massive monetary boost to further its acquisition of African art pieces to expand its African art collection and related research and publications.

The BMA African art collection currently boasts approximately 2,500 works from Africa, dominated by figurative sculptures from the western and central parts of the African Continent and beadwork from the eastern and southern parts, and the $550,000 donated by longtime museum supporters Amy Gould and Matthew Pork of the Amy Gould / Matthew Pork Foundation is intended to go into procuring more African art pieces and reinstalling the museum space by the reinterpreting of African art within the existing gallery space. 

The museum’s existing 2,500-square-foot African art gallery already features approximately 90 artworks from 5,000 years, starting with ancient Egyptian masonry and ending with contemporary Nigerian photographs. This new presentation will portray the full variety of African artistic expression, while at the same time serving to place the artwork in an evolving historical context. The sections include the Empire of West Africa, the rise of Central African countries, the spread of Islam in West and East Africa, the influence of European imperialism and colonialism, and the growth and development of the movement for independence and self-determination. These various disciplines capture how African works of art are inextricably linked to social, political, and religious movements right from pre-modern times to contemporary times. 

Christopher Bedford, the BMA’s Dorothy Wagner Wallis director stated: “For the past two years, BMA has created a collection roadmap that addresses the gaps and inequality of the entire collection, including a special focus on African art and the African diaspora. The vision is extended beyond work from the post-war and modern eras, with a focus on the field-wide discussion of diversity and an approach to re-installing the gallery.”

“I am very grateful to Amy and Matthew for their generous and positive support over the years,” Bedford added. “This wonderful gift will begin to realize our goal of further strengthening our African art collection, which will facilitate new research. You will be able to share new works, ideas, and stories with your audience.” 

“We can learn a lot from these societies where art and culture have influenced our modern life in more ways than most of us imagine,” one of the patrons, Matthew Pork, said.

BMA’s expansion of its African art collection follows other museums and galleries in America and Europe that have keyed into today’s appreciation of the intrinsic value and significance of African art in understanding the world and human history as well as their aesthetic and sustainability values.