The Griot Museum of Black History
THE EXHIBITION HUB AT THE GRIOT MUSEUM HONORS THE BLACK EXPERIENCE IN ST. LOUIS AS TOLD BY THE ARTISTS, NEIGHBORS AND HISTORIANS OF ST. LOUIS PLACE.
VISITING THE hub at the griot
The Griot Museum, founded by Lois Conley in 1997, collects, preserves, interprets, and shares the stories, culture, and history of Black people.
Counterpublic’s partnership with The Griot includes commissioning and donating Sir David Ajaye’s first permanent public artwork (Asaase III) to the museum. The placement of the 100ft-long rammed earth sculpture on the lot adjacent to The Griot affirms the permanence and prominence of the museum as an institution in St. Louis and beyond.
Asaase III (David Ajaye) at The Griot Museum
Ajaye’s work is inspired by the royal complex in Burkina Faso and the walled city of Agadez in Niger. After viewing images from those sites, what does it feel like to stand beside Asaase III?
Rudo Studio
Robert E. Green’s studio tells a story about his past, and about the future he wants. (Read an interview with Green here.) Green sees community building as creative work. What are the special events, traditions, or relationships you have with your neighbors?
George B. Vashon Museum of African American History
After viewing the Vashon’s collection and Matthew Angelo Harrison’s sculptures on view, consider: What is an object from your own life that tells an important story about who you are today?
Bird and Lava (Torkwase Dyson)
Listen to Scott Joplin’s The Rosebud March (1905). What word would you use to describe how this song makes you feel?
Watch this video where Dyson describes her artistic process. Her work explores how Black and brown people organize spaces for freedom. She says her art is “a way to praise my own existence, and give thanks, understand these histories, and make community. It makes me happy.” What do you do to praise your own existence?