Residents and visitors to New Orleans during this U.S spring won’t want to miss the chance to visit an exhibition curated from the Nando’s art collection, one of the largest, and most in-depth of Southern African contemporary masterworks. Curated by Laurie Ann Farrell and in partnership with the Newcomb Art Museum of Tulane, “If You Look Hard Enough, You Can See Our Future” has received strong critical acclaim.

 

Located in the Woldenberg Art Center on Tulane University campus, the Newcomb has been historically known for its significant collection of Newcomb Pottery and other crafts produced at Newcomb College, as well as administering the art collections of the university. The institution presents inspiring exhibitions and programs that engage communities both on and off campus, fostering the creative exchange of ideas and cross-disciplinary collaborations around innovative art and design.

 

From March 10th, the exhibition has been open to the public at no cost and runs through Friday, June 20th. Admission to the Newcomb Art Museum is always free.

 

Due to Carnival Season, the opening reception will be held on March 21st. Visitors may celebrate the new exhibit and enjoy a jazz concert led by Courtney Bryan, renowned musician, composer, and MacArthur Fellow, accompanied by Alfred Jordan on drums and Max Moran on bass.

“Securing a world-class collection of contemporary South African art is supporting the mission of the Newcomb Art Museum to present original exhibitions that explore socially engaged art, civic dialogue, and community transformation,” said Maurita N. Poole, PhD, Executive Director of Newcomb Art Museum.

“This exhibition from the Nando’s collection supports our academic vision in utilizing the critical frameworks of diverse disciplines in conceptualizing and interpreting art and design.”

Says Mirna Wessels CEO of The Spier Arts Trust “This traveling museum show of masterworks from the Nando’s collection is an incredible opportunity for the artists in our collection to be presented, some for the first time, in the U.S. – it offers younger artists exposure to a new and significant market, while at the same time provides rich cultural exchange, introducing South African contemporary society to people from America. We believe residents of New Orleans will be thoroughly engaging with the diverse forms, mediums and themes that are being shown.”

 

Programming includes a Newcomb Art Museum panel on Contemporary African Art, considering the production, curation, and interpretation of African art and material culture. This event is in partnership with New Orleans Book Fest at Lavin-Bernick Center at Tulane University on Saturday, March 29th. The selection of work is drawn from the collection’s strengths in portraiture, landscape, cityscapes and abstraction.

Several of the featured artists have received recent accolades.

 

• Zanele Muholi is a ground-breaking Black queer photographer with a current survey on display at the Tate Modern in London.

 

• Represented by the Stevenson Gallery in South Africa and David Zwirner in New York City and London, Portia Zvavahera is a rising star who was recently featured at the 59th Venice Biennale.

 

• Known for transforming drawings into sculpture, film and operas, William Kentridge has work in the exhibition.

 

• Profiled by CNN, Mbongeni Buthelezi, known for his innovative work created from melted plastic is an artist activist who collects and repurposes litter into breathtaking portraits.

 

Curating an exhibition from a collection built over two decades was an idea that came to life from the late philanthropist and businessman, Dick Enthoven, who tapped his longtime friend Farrell to be the curator. One of the most important curators working to offer visibility to artists from Africa and the African Diaspora to the United States for more than 20 years; Farrell served as a curator of contemporary art at The Africa Center (formerly known as The Museum of African Art) in New York City, an executive director at Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD), and curator and head of modern and contemporary art at the Detroit Institute of Art. Farrell was also the lead curator on the Mercedes-Benz Stadium art collection while at SCAD.

 

“It’s quite meaningful to be able to curate an exhibit from such an exemplary collection and bring an impressive range of talent from the African continent to New Orleans,” said Farrell, “Our hope is that all who visit will experience the universal themes of humanity, love, loss and hope for a better future as illustrated by the artworks.”

 

In 2023, the highly-anticipated exhibition, If You Look Hard Enough, You Can See Our Future, made its worldwide debut at the African American Museum, Dallas (AAMD) in the city’s historic Fair Park.Farrell was named curator of the year by D Magazine (2023) for the quality and scope of the exhibition in Dallas.From September until November 2024 the exhibition featured at the African Diaspora Art Museum of Atlanta (ADAMA).

 

Home to the legendary South-African flamed-grilled PERi-PERi chicken and PERi-PERi sauces, Nando’s recently opened restaurants in the U.S. states of Texas and Georgia.

 

“At Nando’s, we’re proud to see African creativity shining on the global stage. Celebrating original talent from our home in South Africa is at the heart of our values—fuelling our belief in creativity as a force for change and a force for good” says Jessica Wheeler – Marketing Director: Nando’s South Africa.

 

The fair runs through June 20, 2025.

Newcomb Art Museum of Tulane is located in the Woldenberg Art Center on the Tulane campus, 6823 St Charles Ave, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA

 

Monday – Friday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

 

Through the vision of the late South African businessman Dick Enthoven, Nando’s started collecting art in partnership with arts consultancy Spier Arts Trust in 2004 and has since become owner of one of the world’s largest collections of Southern African contemporary art and design. The collection is uniquely displayed in Nando’s restaurants globally, creating bespoke settings, providing access to millions of people, many of whom will never visit an art gallery, or museum.  Visitors to Nando’s custom-designed restaurants also can see firsthand permanent artwork from the 27,000+ piece collection that is featured prominently at each location.