Photo by: Bart Gottula
Last week, graduate students and professors gathered for the introduction of Ella Maria Ray’s new exhibit at the University of Denver Anthropology Museum.
The exhibit, titled “Will the Circle be Unbroken?” features a unique combination of both anthropologically-based and African-based art.
Ray is a professor of Anthropology and speaker at Metro State College. As reflected in her artwork, she has a wide interest in African bottle trees and their relation to anthropology.
After a free reception to introduce the exhibit, Ray spoke about her art’s background and common themes.
“This body of work offers visual stories that reveal the African roots of contemporary diasporic African culture,” Ray said. “People hung glass bottles on trees to mesmerize and capture ancestral and harmful spirits.”
A majority of the pieces are molded from clay and wire to create an array of African bottle trees that were common during times of freedom struggle.
One such piece, titled “Bottle Tree Family” features a tree completely furnished from colorful clay bottles. Both the trunk and leaves of the tree are represented by different shapes and sizes of ceramic bottles.
Other pieces include images of masks, hands, shells, and the combination of all three. “Fearless Reach” is a mold that takes the shape of a large hand reaching for the sky. In the center of the hand is a face with intricate designs and colors. The common “bottle” theme is included in the piece via various bottles that surround the hand.
Each piece also has its own meaning, color scheme and related title such as “Tree Spirit,” “Birth of the Bottle Tree” and “Those Left Behind.”
With regard to the exhibit’s title, Ray asks, “Did the elders of African ancestry who placed these trees in their yard see a relationship between bottle trees, family trees, and the tree of life? If a relationship did exist, what was the nature of the circular bond between the three that held them together through time and space? And, finally, what happens if this bond – this circle – is broken?”
Unlike traditional exhibits, “Will the Circle be Unbroken?” occupies the entire museum with its thirteen-piece collection.
Organizing the extensive exhibit was a lengthy process for graduate museum studies students who helped setup along with DU faculty. The entire setup for an event the size of Ray’s took four to six weeks following two weeks of development.
Brooke Rohde, the museum’s curator of collections said, “Typically this is a student-based museum with four to five student exhibits a year. This (Ray’s exhibit) just happens to be a very special occasion.”
Until March 8, students can see the exhibit for free in the Anthropology Museum in Sturm Hall, room 102. The museum is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
