Queen Mother African Artifact Gallery Opens in Richton Park
Queen Mother African Artifact Gallery Opens in Richton Park
By Tia Carol Jones
Joe E. Gillie has been collecting African and Black art since the 1960s. Growing up in the Black Revolution movement, anytime he saw Black or African art, he purchased it. He always wanted to open a gallery to showcase the art he collected.
With the art gallery, Gillie is bringing the art from the Motherland and the art handed down from the ancestors and exposing it to the community.
Gillie believes it is important to showcase African art and make it accessible for people. He said some people might have misconceptions about African art like masks and sculptures. Those misconceptions are the result of television shows and films which depicted African art as evil or tied to the occult. He said seeing those items in person and learning the history and meaning behind them can help educate the person and end those misconceptions.
“I feel the gallery will give people knowledge of the purpose and the meaning and the history of the arts from Africa. Our people didn’t write books back then, that were handed down explaining their nature and history, they handed down their history and feelings and spirituality through art,” he said. He added the African masks and statues were used for celebrations, festivals and milestones.
Gillie is reaching out to educational facilities to partner with them to bring young people to the art gallery. He wants our people to get to know their history and see the art at the gallery. The art gallery is his way of giving back to the community. He thinks people of all races should come visit the gallery because it is important for everyone to learn the history of African art. There are also items for sale at the gallery.
Gillie acquired the art from all over the world. He works with auctions, galleries, private owners and estate sales. He said a lot of his art comes from galleries in Europe because they have a lot of Black and African artifacts. He also searches on the internet for art that he thinks will fit into the gallery and people will be interested in. Gillie also has African furniture and other pieces he collected from here and there. When he retired in 2016, he really started to collect African art.
Queen Mother African Artifact Gallery is located at the Majestic Office Center, 5111 Sauk Trail Suite F, in Richton Park.
Guided tours are available by appointment. For more information, call 708-996-4859 or email queenmothergallery@yahoo.com.
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