Until March 03, 2024, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in collaboration with the Cleveland Museum of Art, presents “Africa & Byzantium“, a fascinating perspective on the cultural exchange between Africa and Byzantium throughout history.
While art history has long emphasized the power of the Byzantine Empire, the important artistic contributions of North Africa, Egypt, Nubia and Ethiopia, as well as many of the great African kingdoms, have remained largely unrecognized on the Mediterranean art scene. Yet the exchanges between African nations and Byzantium had a considerable influence on the Empire’s much-vaunted glory.
“Africa & Byzantium” takes a fresh, more accurate look at the past, highlighting the artistic, religious and commercial links that shaped the interactions between these two regions, through the works of art, artifacts and precious objects that bear witness to this complex relationship.
Bringing together an impressive array of masterpieces ranging from mosaics, sculpture, pottery and ironwork to luxury objects, paintings and religious manuscripts, the exhibition offers a pertinent visual account of Africa’s pivotal role in international networks of trade and cultural exchange. With works of art almost never before revealed to the general public, “Africa & Byzantium” brings a new transparency to the astounding artistic achievements of medieval Africa.
This long-awaited artistic presentation features unique pieces from different regions of Africa and the Byzantine Empire, demonstrating the similarities and reciprocal influences that contributed to the enrichment of both cultures. Through a plurality of mediums and achievements as unusual as they are striking, “Africa & Byzantium” addresses how the continent contributed to the development of the pre-modern world, and offers a fuller account of the dynamic multi-ethnic societies of North and East Africa that shaped the artistic, economic and cultural life of Byzantium and beyond.
“Africa & Byzantium” offers a unique opportunity to delve into the little-known history of these cultural exchanges, and to better understand the impact of these interactions on the art and culture of the period. This captivating exhibition promises an enriching experience for all lovers of history, art and culture.
A catalog of the exhibition is available thanks to the support of the Giorgi Family Foundation and the Mellon Foundation. Additional support is provided by an anonymous foundation, the Michel David-Weill Fund, the International Council of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Visiting Committee of the Department of Medieval Art and Cloisters, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Other contributors include Nellie and Robert Gipson, the National Endowment for the Humanities, Wendy A. Stein and Bart Friedman, and the Doris Duke Fund for Publications.
