Circa: The NCMA Blog

Although associated with the mourning and sadness of funerary traditions, this beaker is actually an object of celebration and life.

NCMA curatorial intern Cammy Thomas takes museums to task, writing about why showcasing Black female artists is so important.

The Museum committed to installing winning artworks from the Boys and Girls Clubs as an exhibition. Then came the pandemic and a new plan.

The story behind Senegalese gold jewelry, and the women who wore it in the 18th and 19th centuries, is layered with a history of oppression and empowerment.

Rabbi Shimon said: “There are three crowns: the Crown of Torah, the Crown of Priesthood and the Crown of Royalty, but the Crown of a Good Name supersedes them all."

The first in a series of Circa posts in which NCMA curatorial intern Taylor Hunkins interprets African utilitarian objects as products of design.

After years of conservation, Bacchus looks clean, restored, and pretty cool with his new arm and his head back on.

The division of art from medicine is a modern concept. In the Middle Ages, the apothecary supplied the same materials to doctors, painters, and anyone in need of medicine.

Our observant ranger keeps an eye on what the wildlife is up to in the Museum Park.

Do allies participate in oppressive systems that further marginalize the communities they attempt to support? Artists in the NCMA's collection pose a challenging question.

At least not in the Western sense. NCMA intern Sarah Frisbie explains.

Animal-shaped incense burners were used in ancient Costa Rica to seek healing from another world.

GSK Curatorial Research Fellow Ángel Gonzalez describes the role of "the flayed one," a Mesoamerican god that could both send or cure sickness.

Artist José Bedia portrays a saint of health and healing often described as showing no mercy to the arrogant but providing solace to the afflicted, especially to the poor and to immigrants.

Many African artists and spiritual practitioners are more than willing to incorporate other ideas into their practice to strengthen their potency, and this becomes apparent in the arts.

The lioness-headed Sekhmet, like many Egyptian deities, had a dual nature: She could not only bring pestilence but also ward off epidemics and illness. Sekhmet was the protector of the king and a healing deity, the “mistress of life” who could heal those who suffered. 

A timely look at a timeless theme

The twin brothers portrayed in a treasured early Italian painting in the NCMA's collection were surgeons who gave free medical care during times of plague.