It is traditional to come home from a trip with a souvenir: a T-shirt, snow globe or a camera full of pictures. But Eleanor Gwynn knew she was far from traditional when she started packing to return home from her first trip to Egypt.
"I think that I came home with 13 bags that first trip," she says with a chuckle, recalling how her husband came over and helped her pack, then helped her plead with airport officials to get her (and her 13 bags) back to the United States.
"I became fascinated with all aspects of the culture," says Gwynn, who packed her bags full of souvenirs from Egypt including jewelry, art pieces, pottery and sculpture.
After that first trip to Egypt, Gwynn has returned there six more times in addition to visiting other parts of Africa and the Caribbean. For Gwynn, her love affair with Africa began with an interest in cultural ethnic dance, which has now become her life's work. As the chair of the department of visual and performing arts at N.C. A&T State University, she continues to collect African art and artifacts.
Some of those artifacts will be on display through Oct. 31, along with pieces from other Triad collectors, at the Central Library in Greensboro. The exhibit, "A Journey to Africa Through the Arts," is also a partnership with People to People Liaison, a nonprofit group that supports African culture through microloans for women and money for student education fees.
For collector Anne McKee, her love affair with Africa started with her husband, whose home was there. He's the son of missionaries in the Belgian Congo, known today as the Democratic Republic of Congo.
McKee and her husband joined the missions of the Presbyterian church as well and served for 26 years in the Congo, surviving civil unrest and language barriers to form lasting bonds with the people.
Throughout her tenure, she and her family collected pieces, including many that have stories behind them.
"In the exhibit, there are some clay figurines of musicians and domestic things that a man made while his wife was in the hospital with tuberculosis. He made these figures and sold them to pay for her treatment," McKee says.
Although retired, McKee still keeps close contact with Africa through e-mail and phone conversations, and each year, those who served in the Congo have a reunion. By loaning items for this exhibit, she hopes visitors can gain a glimpse into African life.
"These are beautiful people with courage despite hardship," she says.
For Gwynn, the artifacts are also about the people and the place, much more than just the object itself.
"Artifacts should tell a story," she says. "I want to know as much as I can about the person who makes each piece. I don't just collect things or take pictures. I meet the people."
During one tenure in Egypt, she lived in a flat with Nubians in an apartment with no air-conditioning, sleeping on a foam mattress on the floor. She did it because she loved the people, loved the culture, and she wants visitors to get a taste of that when they see some of her collection.
"I want them to have a connection, to have a window through which they can explore a bit of this culture."
Contact Stephanie Burt at charlotteghost@gmail.com.
