Art Institute of ChicagoGrant Park / Loop

Body and Being in African Art

Now showing2 November 2026 – 1 March 2028$32

More than 50 objects from the Arts of Africa collection show beliefs and values surrounding the body shared across the continent, and the distinct cultural forms those ideas take.

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On now All of November 2026

Preview: written before the show opened

A kneeling woman holds out a rooster-shaped container for kola nuts, which Yoruba hosts share with guests. Her wooden surface is rubbed with washing blue, a laundry aid used to stop white clothes yellowing, and for the Yoruba blue stands for coolness and composure.

You'll find her in Gallery 227 among more than 50 objects from the museum's own Arts of Africa collection, made and used in the 19th and 20th centuries. The thread running through them is that the body's outward look, whether carved, stylised or adorned, reflects a person's character, health and social standing. Many mark birth, death, coming of age or contact with the spirit world, and they were made to be used and handled, not only looked at.

It is a collection rotation in a single gallery rather than a ticketed show, so it comes with general museum admission, and it stays up until 1 March 2028.

Editor's pick

More than 50 objects from the museum's Arts of Africa collection, on beliefs about the body shared across the continent and the distinct forms each culture gives them.

Look for

The kneeling woman with a rooster
Look for a Yoruba figure offering a rooster-shaped kola-nut container, her wood rubbed with washing blue, the laundry aid that kept white clothes from yellowing.
The Senufo caryatid drum
A drum over four feet tall, carved as a woman of rank balancing a load on her head, that may have been played at funerals for members of all-female associations.
The Sowei helmet mask
A Sherbro or Mende mask with an elaborate carved hairstyle, danced by senior women of the Sande association at initiations and funerals, one of the rare African masks performed by women.
The lidded box with a woman's head
A Mangbetu or Zande box topped by a woman's head with a halo-shaped hairstyle, standing on a base shaped like a woman's stool, made to hold jewelry and protective charms.
The Yaka chief's headrest
A small carved neckrest that was part of a chief's insignia, there to protect his medicine-charged raffia hat while he slept.