The University of Olivet Visual Arts Department is hosting an exhibition titled “African Art in the Cycle of Life: Work from the Collection of Robert Glenn” from Feb. 18 to March 31.
Glenn, a 1972 The University of Olivet alumnus, started collecting tribal African art in 1989. “My first purchase was an Ashanti stool from Ghana. I planned to become an art seller, but as my collection built up it was hard to part with many of the items, so I stopped selling them,” he said.
His collection now totals more than 300 objects consisting primarily of wooden, bronze and terracotta pieces from Ghana, Cameroon, Mali, Ethiopia, Angola and Zaire.
“African tribal art is almost never meant to beautify or decorate,” Glenn said. “It is used for tribal worship, rituals and the supernatural. The world of African tribal art is one of content and form. This exhibit may bring the significance and perfection of that world a little closer to us all.”
Admission for the event is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., or by appointment.
For more information, call the Visual Arts Department at 269.749.7627.