When you imagine the work that makes up the contents of an art museum or gallery what do you picture? Perhaps you visualize decaying oil portraits of former kings. Maybe old Greek figures carved from ancient marble, or large abstract creations that make you think your little brother could have made that. 

Now let me ask you another question: Did you picture any African Art? It’s ok to admit if you didn’t, it’s not entirely your fault. The art that fills our predominant institutions minimizes the variety and complexities of African and diasporic art. From my own experience at the Art Institute of Chicago, I’ve seen how the whole continent can be diluted to a single room at the end of a hallway hidden in the back corner of the museum, despite the presence of Africans in America since the creation of this country.

Historically, Black artists struggle to find space in the art world due to pre-existing infrastructures, including censorship, institutional racism, economic disparities, etc. The Civil Rights Movement and the Black Arts Movement sparked a surge of cultural and artistic activism among African Americans across the United States and Africans globally. This ignited the emergence of Black-owned galleries and cultural institutions aimed at promoting Black art and empowering Black artists throughout the 1960s and 1970s. 

Faie Afrikan Art Gallery is a Black-owned gallery in Bronzeville Chicago located on 43rd Street. It is owned and operated by Faye Edwards, a longtime Chicago resident. 

Growing up, Edwards was curious about African art, loving the art of the Republic of Congo, Nigeria, and found works created in Tanzania and Kenya remarkable. Intrigued by this diverse artistic realm, Edwards made many more trips to the continent of Africa after originally only visiting two countries: Mali and Guinea. 

Initially, Edwards had no intention of starting a business and began collecting art for her own personal enjoyment. But she found herself needing a place to store and display the intricate art that she had gathered. 

Edwards’ mentor, Lawrence Dan, used to own The Woodshop on 75th and King Drive in Bronzeville. Edwards credits Dan as revolutionizing the field allowing it to grow. 

“At this time, people weren’t selling Black art and he was the only one interested,” Edwards said. 

Dan created space for Black artists — African American and African — to establish themselves and create a path for Black curators to follow. This ignited the formation of the Faie Afrikan Art Gallery, which has been at their current location for 11 years.

 The gallery is a two-story building with a warm and intimate ambiance. Unlike the standard sterile white gallery walls, the space is painted in various neutral shades that complement the appearances of the art on display. Ornate rugs decorate the wood flooring while numerous sculptures, instruments, and paintings embellish the space. 

Edwards said the cozy space and unique smells evoke visceral emotions that visitors often experience when they enter her gallery, and I have to agree. 

Edwards said that many people understand African art to be solely for decoration or ritual. She wants to expand this narrative by showing that these creations have stories and often serve a purpose. 

Edwards added that it is important to understand where things come from and how they were used historically. She said she believes there are no experts in African art because the field is so vast.

To provide more information, the gallery keeps a collection of books on different aspects of African cultures —such as life, death, and afterlife— with the art practices that pertain to them. 

Edward explained that the concept of beauty displayed in the art in some African cultures  is very different from the presentation of beauty in occidental cultures. “There’s no way around it, you have to put in the time and effort to learn about the history and meanings of these works,” she said.

Though the gallery began with traditional art from past centuries, Edwards has also opened her space to contemporary works. She does clarify that the modern echoes tradition and she sees no dissonance between traditional and contemporary African art. 

An example is the recent photography installation by former School of the Art Institute of Chicago student and featured artist Isadore Howard. Howard graduated in 1978 with a Bachelor’s in Fine Arts, now he preserves images of the Nigerian people and their various ethnic groups in their natural state through his unique lens, transporting viewers to his travels.

Edwards said that she would like to further the gallery’s outreach beyond the occasional talks and classes already hosted in her space. She believes that young people are very important to the preservation of this work. 

Exposing younger generations to this alternative form of presenting African art from the standard Western perception breaks institutional barriers. Edwards’ gallery brings African art to the forefront making it a topic of discussion, dissolving all sense of hierarchy, putting culture and education first.

All photos are linked to the original file in drive and are provided as RAW and JPG.

All photos, except the curators, are taken by me, Mya Jones.