The Fowler Museum of Cultural History at UCLA presents a lecture by Suzanne Preston Blier entitled, "A Scattering of Pearls: Architecture of the Gold Road, and the Mali-Spain Diaspora."

Saturday, June 2, 2007
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Fowler Museum of Cultural History
enter UCLA from Sunset at Westwood
Los Angeles, CA 90095

In 1324 King Mansa Musa of Mali met a son of the Granada Spice and Perfume Guild head named Al-Saheli in Cairo. Musa invited Al-Saheli to accompany him back to Mali to become his court architect. Harvard University art and architectural historian Suzanne Preston Blier examines this remarkable architect-patron relationship, the buildings resulting from it, and the larger history of north-south exchange during the centuries of the trans-Saharan gold trade. Drawing on a range of evidence, this lecture addresses the impact of sub-Saharan African cultural forms in Andalusian Spain in the course of the centuries leading up to the Musa-Al-Saheli meeting, and the enduring impact of these early ties in subsequent eras.

Come early and enjoy the excellent exhibitions currently at the Fowler:

http://www.fowler.ucla.edu/incEngine/?content=cm&cm=exhibitions

• Makishi: Mask Characters of Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Angola -- now through June 17
• Architecture of the Veil: An Installation by Samta Benyahia  --  now through Sept. 2, 2007
• El Anatsui: Gawu -- now through Aug. 26
• Butabu: Adobe Architecture of West Africa, Photographs by James Morris -- now through July 15
• Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives  --  On ongoing display

And, the Fowler Museum Store Pre-Inventory Sale begins June 1 and runs through June 14, during regular Museum hours - check website for hours - www.fowler.ucla.edu

Enjoy savings of 50% or more on many wonderful items in the Fowler Museum Store, including fabulous jewelry, leather boxes, museum catalogs, Asian ceramics, fun totes, beautiful vases, elegant scarves, African textiles, coasters, toys, and more!

Cost : Lecture and exhibitions are free and open to the public; parking is available in lot 4 for $8.

www.fowler.ucla.edu

Sponsor(s): Fowler Museum at UCLA