Spirit of Sisterhood

Object Details

Aida Muluneh, born 1974, Ethiopia

Label Text

Aida Muluneh recognizes the raw power of the camera to document and give agency to the people upon whom it focuses. In the "Spirit of Sisterhood" she draws our attention to women of the diaspora, emphasizing the links and disjunctures between generations, commemorating the sorrows and celebrating the victories of their lives. Her subjects convey graceful yet strong approaches to the challenges of life. Muluneh states that she hopes her work will "foster an appreciation for artistic expression among traditional African cultures and assist in changing perceptions about people of color throughout the world."

Description

Black and white photograph showing two young women facing front and peering through a diaphanous veil that covers their heads and shoulders. Their faces are bisected both vertically and horizontally with a series of white dots.

Provenance

Aida Muluneh, New York, 2000 to 2004

Exhibition History

Conversations: African and African American Artworks in Dialogue - From the Collections of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art and Camille O. and William H. Cosby, Jr., National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, November 7, 2014-January 24, 2016

Ethiopian Passages: Dialogues in the Diaspora, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, May 2-October 5, 2003

Ethiopian Passages: Dialogues in the Diaspora, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., May 3-December 7, 2003

Love Now, Black History Month National Photography Exhibit at Nordstrom's Department Stores, 2003

Published References

Harney, Elizabeth. 2003. Ethiopian Passages: Contemporary Art from the Diaspora. London: Philip Wilson; Washington, D.C.: National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, pp. 80, 82, pl. 20.

Kreamer, Christine Mullen and Adrienne L. Childs (eds). 2014. Conversations: African and African American Artworks in Dialogue from the Collections of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art and Camille O. and William H. Cosby, Jr. Washington, D.C.: National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, pp. 71, 86, no. 55, pl. 27.

Content Statement

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Image Requests

High resolution digital images are not available for some objects. For publication quality photography and permissions, please contact the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at https://africa.si.edu/research/eliot-elisofon-photographic-archives/

Credit Line

Museum purchase

2000

Object number

2004-3-1

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Copyright

© 2000 Aida Muluneh

Type

Photograph

Medium

Silver dye bleach (cibachrome) print on paper

Dimensions

H x W: 101.2 x 76.1 cm (39 13/16 x 29 15/16 in.)

Geography

Ethiopia

See more items in

National Museum of African Art Collection

National Museum of African Art

Topic

female

Record ID

nmafa_2004-3-1

Metadata Usage (text)

Usage conditions apply

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ys74d36c24f-b48b-42b9-a960-eb48aefb702d