Vistors with Esther Mahlangu from the right:
Tony Garcia, Director of Jazz Studies, VCUarts Susan King Roth, Senior Associate Dean, School of the Arts
Richard Roth, Professor, Painting & Printmaking, VCUarts
Kwena Ramahuta, University of kwaZula-Natal, Durban (UKZN)
Barbara Noble Howard, VMFA Foundation
Dalisu Ndlazi, UKZN
Jude Ganasen, UKZN
Burton Naidoo, UKZN
Neil Gonsalves, UKZN
Marriam Mahlangu, granddaughter and assistant to the artist
Richard Woodward, Curator of African Art, VMFA
Esther Mahlangu, artist
Mr. Ndumiso Mngadi, Third Secretary: Public Diplomacy, Embassy of the Republic of South Africa
Ms. Nowetu Ethel Luti, Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of the Republic of South Africa
Grace Masango, artist liaison
Rogan van den Berg, UKZN
Lungelo Ngcobo, UKZN
Sonya Clark, Chair, Craft &Material Studies, VCUarts
Daryl Harper, Music Chair, VCUarts
R. McKenna Brown, PhD, Executive Director, Global Education Office, VCU
Sandra Taylor, African art collector
Karen Getty, Docent and Tour Services Coordinator, VMFA
The Virginia Commonwealth University Department of Music has been delighted to welcome back students and faculty from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) from Durban, South Africa. For the past three years, musicians from VCU and UKZN have participated in the Jazz Bridge exchange program. During this year’s exchange, the South African five students and two faculty members have toured Richmond, attended jazz and music industry classes, and have participated in student jam sessions.
On Thursday, Sept. 25, the group toured VMFA, meeting with Richard Woodward, curator of African art, who introduced them to Ndebele artist Esther Mahlangu, her granddaughter and assistant Marriam Mahlangu and liaison Grace Masango. The students and VCUart leadership marveled at Esther’s two VMFA-commissioned murals, which are almost completed. Similar to the paintings Ndebele women paint on their houses in South Africa, these massive works flank the entrance to the museum’s African galleries, echoing geometric themes which recur throughout that collection.
Coinciding with their visit were officials from the Embassy of the Republic of South Africa, Ms. Nowetu Ethel Luti, Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission; and Mr. Ndumiso Mngadi, Third Secretary: Public Diplomacy. What a happy convergence in celebration of the culture of South Africa.
“The Jazz Bridge exchange program is more than just a musical collaboration across the globe,” saidAntonio Garcia, associate professor and director of Jazz Studies at VCU. “It’s the opportunity for students and faculty to explore the idea of jazz as a voice of social justice on both continents.”
The Jazz Bridge program is made possible by a grant from the VCU Global Education Office and VCUarts.
– Amy Sheets, VCUarts communications with Suzanne Hall, VMFA communications