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The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s collection is full of interesting surprises.  I really wanted to photograph more there, but they have what appears to be a “no photo, except in one or two galleries of European paintings” policy.  As I noted before, though, they have an incredible lack of attentive docents - I was able to photograph pretty freely in a few areas, which worked out okay.  I mean, isn’t copious documentation the purpose of a museum visit, anyways?

The museum has three buildings, all connected underground.  In the third building, the Caroline Weiss Law Building, which was the original museum before the addition of the Audrey Jones Beck Building and the third building, which is basically a parking garage and entrance to the other buildings, I came across the Glassell Collection of African Gold.  One thing I noticed at museums in Dallas and Houston is that their collections seemed “more formed” by gifted collections than the larger museums I’m used to, such as LACMA or the FAMSF museums in San Francisco. 

I’m not sure if this is an issue of presentation or if it demonstrates the collecting limits of some of these less financially powerful institutions.  Regardless, it’s wonderful to come across idiosyncratic collections like the Glassell Collection - after seeing dozens of fine art museums around the country, you are in many cases looking at a set series of objects, deemed interesting and necessary for the legitimate operation of a museum, and I perceive this as a lack of vision.  On one hand there’s a benefit to collecting a highly vetted collection of “acceptably important works and artists”, and making them accessible to people in places like Kansas City or Des Moines, but on the other hand there’s a lack of curatorial vision involved, as well.  I think these museums really owe it to us to highlight not just what’s famous and looks nice on a tote bag, but to present the novel facets of human culture, history and practice, and it’s interesting and unique collections like the Glassell that bring new perspectives to the table.

above - Gunbearer’s Bandoliers - It’s really impossible for me to do these any of these objects descriptive justice.  According to the accompanying label (which has a picture of two Akan men wearing them) these are more than symbolic, the knives were used to “stab the cheeks of criminals so that they could not make oaths against the chief.” 

above - Shotguns and Cartridge Belt - According to their label, these would be carried by the chief’s gunbearer, and that the chief would use them as a “dance implement” while the chief is being carried on a palanquin.

above - No label for these.  I took this picture primarily because of the pith helmet.  I don’t think there’s any more comical, or more lasting symbol of European colonialism in Africa than the pith helmet.  It’s hard to imagine why anyone would make a golden image of one of the symbols of their oppressors, but someone did, and now that gesture is forever and puzzlingly enshrined in a museum in Texas.

above - Swords and Executioner’s Knives - According to the label, these swords form part of a state’s treasury, in addition to being used for ritual purposes.  I was really attracted to the sword on the left, with the big powder keg ornament on it. The executioner’s knives are the same as the ones on the bandolier, they’re just un-bandoliered at the moment.

This is only a really small component of the Glassell collection, and it’s a don’t miss exhibit if one is in Houston.  I would have photographed more, but I was being as discreet as possible.

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