Another New Acquisition @ QCC

Another amazing object that has been newly added to the QCC Art Gallery's permanent collection is the Malian Dogon house post pictured at left.

The Dogon are best known for their religious traditions, their mask dances, wooden sculpture and their architecture.

Dogon art revolves around religious values, ideals, and freedoms.  Their sculptures are not made to be seen publicly, and are commonly hidden from the public eye within the houses of families or in sanctuaries. The importance of secrecy is due to the symbolic meaning behind the pieces.

A toguna, or palaver hut, is a public building erected in the center of the village by the Dogon people in the West African country of Mali.

Togunas are built with a very low roof, with the express purpose of forcing visitors to sit rather than stand. They are used by the village elders to discuss problems of the community, but can also serve as a place for customary law.

A New Acquisition @ QCC

The Songye people are a Bantu ethnic group from the central Democratic Republic of the Congo. They're famed the world over for their skill as wood carvers. And this talent is never more prominently in evidence than in their carving of fetish figures like the one at left.

The figure is imbued with special power through the insertion of Bishimba, fetish material, placed in the hollow of the head or abdomen.The shaman, Nganga, may further enhance the figures power through the attachment of specially treated snakeskins, feathers, bracelets and necklaces.

The amazing example of this tradition pictured at left is currently on display on the second floor of the QCC Art Gallery, which is open to all for free.

It's part of new acquisitions of the gallery, and comes to us via the generosity of David and Bonnie Ross. Come explore the magic, mystery and religion of Africa when you visit.

Other Spaces: Registrar's Office

As we mentioned many time before, the QCC Art Gallery spreads its bounty in every nook and crany of the QCC Campus. Sometimes the art is non-descript and unimposing, but sometimes it is quite the opposite.

A case in point is depicted here. It is an African statue which towers 3 to 4 meters just outside the Registrar's Office...as if registering for classes was not intimidating enough already :)

Art, Compassion and Generosity

This sculpture is located just outside the A&D Department.

This amazing sculpture, garbed in the cold, pale blanket of the winter season should serve to remind us that we are privileged to have more than we need, but many are less fortunate.

Please consider a contribution to the newly established QCC Food Pantry.

Hungarian Rhapsody

Franz Liszt wasn't the only one to rhapsodize about his native Hungary. In fact, the QCC Art Gallery hosted a noted surrealist from that corner of the globe not long ago. In fact, the work appeared twice and the QCC Art Gallery Press produced the accompanying tome.

If you're interested in procuring a copy, just click here or the pic above.

8 Years of Highlights

If you've ever doubted the majesty of what takes place inside the QCC Art Gallery, or if you've missed any past exhibits, check out the review pages below for an eye-opener.

2013 / 2012 / 2011 / 2010 / 2009 / 2008 / 2007 / 2006

The KHC at QCC

Yet another prime location for discovering art on the QCC campus is the Kupferberg Holocaust Center.


The KHC always has a full calendar of events and exhibits, but also has some amazing work on permanent display, some of which has been previously featured at this blog and its sister MOJO blog.


Works like David Schwab's "Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me?" are currently on exhibit, but to get an idea of the breadth and depth of things past and things to come, visit the KHC site.

Better yet, visit the KHC in-person!

The Kupferberg Holocaust Center, just inside the main gate to QCC-CUNY,
not far from the QCC Art Gallery, the Sculpture Garden, and the Art & Design Department.

Don't Miss It Entirely

Alright, so you missed the Opening, but that's no reason to miss out altogether. The Liren Wei Collection is still on display in the main room at the QCC Art Gallery, and the amazing African and pre-Columbian pieces donated by Bonnie and David Ross are up the stairs in the second floor gallery.

QCC AG Highlights: 2013

Holocaust survivor Rosemary Koczy's work is part of the QCC AG Permanent Collection
and the QCC AG Press has published all three volumes of her memoirs.

It isn't every gallery that can claim it had three exhibits of vast cultural significance on display within one calendar year. In fact, very few could claim one. But the QCC Art Gallery achieved this distinction in 2013, thanks to the bravura efforts of its Executive Director, Faustino Quintanilla.

Click pics to view more.

QCC AG Highlights: 2012

2012 saw the celebration of three generations of Spanish painters, the return of a dear friend,

the emergence of a new friend, a remarkable array of African headgear, and last, but not least,

an amazing fantasy art exhibit.

Click pics to view more.

QCC AG Highlights: 2011

2011 was another banner year for the QCC Art Gallery, displaying works both varied and of exquisite quality. Modernism, Pop-Art and Fantasy predominated, expressed in a range of media and motifs, it is a year worth remembering.

Click pics to view more.

QCC AG Highlights: 2010

This delicate vessel, displayed at the QCC Art Gallery in 2010, is over 4000 years old.

From ancient Chinese vessels to post-expressionist musings, 2010 was an eclectic year for the QCC Art Gallery. The Gallery's largest installation to date, as well as the verdant, pastoral depictions of a former faculty member also appeared.

Click pics to view more.

QCC AG Highlights: 2009

Among several other exhibits that appeared at the QCC Art Gallery in 2009, those devoted to the work of Norman Gorbaty and the Kuba Textiles stood apart with distinction.

Click the pics to view a plethora of these works.

QCC AG Highlights: 2007

2007 was the first year our talented friend Mara Sfara exhibited at the QCC Art Gallery, and it was also the year a major Cameroonian exhibit appeared, the first of several to come. And let us not forget Miriam Beerman's work, which also graces the National Gallery in DC.

Click any pics to view more images of the art that interests you.

Bonnie & David Ross

Thanks to the immense generosity of Bonnie & David Ross, the QCC Art Gallery and all who visit it can enjoy a superb array of African Art pieces like those pictured below.

Now on display on the second floor balcony.

Haunting Ladies

It's turning colder, the leaves are changing color, and thoughts inevitably go to those cheery autumnal feasts like Halloween and All Soul's Day. If these haunting works, all of which have appeared at the QCC Art Gallery, appeal, then simply click pics for related images and information.

The Liren Wei Collection

The Liren Wei Collection depicts a broad and exciting range of traditional African art.
And it will be coming to the QCC Art Gallery soon. Don't miss it.

Traditional African Art
October 18 through November 30, 2017

The Cool Life

If you've ever wondered how some human societies survive, even thrive, in such cold and forbidding climates as the Arctic, then you need to visit one of two spectacular new exhibits that will be featured at the QCC Art Gallery. Let the artistic genius of these Northern peoples inform you.

Carving Life
October 18, 2017 through January 17, 2018

@ the QCC Art Gallery