Celebration Focuses on Inspiring and Engaging Young Women and Girls of Color Through Dance, Poetry and Storytelling
The National Museum of African Art will join other Smithsonian museums and hundreds of cultural institutions across the country Saturday, March 12, in celebrating a national campaign to reach women and girls of color. The day, held during Women’s History Month, is a special edition of the Smithsonian’s signature “Museum Day Live!,” which will specifically welcome young women and girls of color, their peers and their families, and inspire them to discover the arts and sciences through a series of programs. The day’s events are free and open to the public.
Events at the museum will include a “Teen Poetry Workshop,” featuring award-winning Sudanese American poet Safia Elhillo, who will lead a poetry-writing workshop, and drop-in design workshops inspired by textiles, jewelry, beadwork and more diverse traditions representing and empowering often-overlooked women artists. There will be a performance from the Coyaba Dance Ensemble on the crucial role of women in the art and history of dance and special docent-led tours of the museum’s galleries featuring works by female artists. Literary groundbreakers Ntozake Shange and Mecca Jamilah Sullivan will discuss race, women, urban life and the power of imagination among African diasporic literatures and cultures. More information about additional programming for the day is at Africa.si.edu.
Participants are encouraged to use the hashtags #MuseumDay, #MuseumDayLive #ImagineHer on social media throughout the day.
A free shuttle service will be provided for visitors who want to visit other Smithsonian museums located off the National Mall. All events are free, but some require registration.
The full list of Smithsonian-wide events celebrating Museum Day Live! can be found on the Smithsonian’s website.
About the National Museum of African Art
The National Museum of African Art is America’s only museum dedicated to the collection, conservation, study and exhibition of traditional and contemporary African art. The museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (closed Dec. 25). Admission is free. It is located at 950 Independence Ave. S.W., near the Smithsonian Metro-Rail station on the Blue and Orange lines.