A particular modernist approach to dance was innovated by a Black woman. It was Katherine Dunham,
who, in addition to being a dancer and choreographer, was also an anthropologist and social activist. Brings
to mind the scholarly work of another Black female anthropologist and folklorist, Zora Neale Hurston
whose deep dive into the stories of the American South gave us incredible stories like Their Eyes Were
Watching God and Barracoon. In addition to the enduring legacy of Dunham’s technique that infused
Caribbean folk movement with ballet, known widely as “The Dunham Technique,” she also introduced the
interconnected nature of North African, West African, and Caribbean movements in her choreography for the
1948 film Casbah.
It is the blending of North and West Africa that elevates the prospect that perhaps Egypt is not all Middle
Eastern, and instead is more Northern Africa.
It may surprise some that Egypt has not always been presented in geographical teachings as part of Africa.
Concept-based artist, cultural critic, and activist for Black women’s perspectives Lorraine O’Grady, who
died last week at age 90, recounted in a recent New York Times article a memory of her third-grade
teacher showing her class a map of Africa and stating, “…except Egypt, which is part of the Middle East.”
O'Grady after performing "Nefertiti/Devonia Evangeline" at the New York Feminist Art Institute, 1981. © Lorraine O'Grady
What O’Grady heard in her third-grade class was the concept purported by art historians, archaeologists,
and art collectors, relegating Egypt’s majesty and history to a more Mediterranean origin rather than
acknowledging that the innovations in medicine, architecture, timekeeping, mathematics, and numerous
other inventions were those of Africans. Perhaps the advanced and complicated nature of what remains the
unexplainable, like the building of the great pyramids or complex irrigation systems, was so far beyond the
comprehension of European explorers and colonizers that none could conceive of the intelligence that
continues to be present in the northernmost region of what was then considered The Dark Continent.
“Flight Into Egypt: Black Artists and Ancient Egypt, 1876-Now," recently opened at The Met and will be on
view through February 2025. The exhibit features almost 200 works and includes a series of associated
performances by a variety of Black artist performers. One of the most intriguing elements of the
exhibition, curated by The Met’s Akili Tommasino with McClain Groff, is the inclusion of painting,
sculpture, photography, installation, and video as well as album covers, media, and fashion by artists across
disciplines and generations. Some of the visual artists include Jacob Lawrence, Aaron Douglas, Lois
Mailou Jones, and Jean Michel Basquiat; comedian Richard Pryor; Afro-futurist bandleader Sun-Ra; and
singer Solange Knowles.
Works are made largely by African American artists looking to define their cultural history after the legacy
of the violent trans-Atlantic slave trade, a historical injustice that went hand in hand with the denigration
of African culture as inferior to Europe. Claiming ancient Egypt has been a way of asserting lost agency
and power.
If you don't have a trip to New York planned in the near future, you can enjoy an exhibition tour below:
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